


The Ocean Becomes You

by novashyperion



Category: Free!
Genre: Boys In Love, Boys Kissing, Fic Collection, Fluff, Gen, Getting Together, M/M, Multi, contains makorin and makoharu too but its not much so why clog the tags
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-12
Updated: 2019-11-12
Packaged: 2021-01-29 03:20:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 24
Words: 49,766
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21403321
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/novashyperion/pseuds/novashyperion
Summary: Old Free Fics collection!
Relationships: Matsuoka Rin/Shigino Kisumi/Yamazaki Sousuke, Matsuoka Rin/Yamazaki Sousuke, Nanase Haruka/Yamazaki Sousuke, Shigino Kisumi/Yamazaki Sousuke
Comments: 1
Kudos: 22





	1. SouRin: Rilakkuma

**Author's Note:**

> ik going through a million tags is annoying, so I tried to keep it as concise as possible. Each chapter will be labelled or include warnings (if there even are any) to make it easier.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sousuke has a Rilakkuma collection, and Rin finds it all too precious.
> 
> A silly fic with no real meaning.

Of all the things Rin thought Sousuke would collect (like maybe goggles or soda tabs), it certainly wasn’t Rilakkuma. Rin had been more than bewildered when he’d come to spend the weekend at Sousuke’s house and saw Rilakkuma lining his room. They’d moved back home after leaving the Samezuka dorms. It was Rin that suggested it after the first weekend back home, and Sousuke had agreed without hesitation. Sousuke had told him that his room hadn’t changed much since middle school, since he’d gone off to Tokitsu for high school, so he expected it to be more or less intact since then. His parents were the nostalgic types, so he doubted they were going to mess with anything unless Sousuke personally did.

So when Rin stepped into Sousuke’s room and saw a Rilakkuma fleece blanket spread out over his bed, and a pile of Rilakkuma plushies in one corner of his room, Rin had to do a double take. A giant Rilakkuma was laying lazily on the bed, too. Sousuke to his credit didn’t even blink. He dumped Rin’s bag on his desk before sitting back heavily on his bed.

“What’re you standing there for? Rin, sit down,” Sousuke said.

He laid back on the bed, pillowing his head on the huge Rilakkuma. Rin dropped down on the computer chair, surprised that a smaller bear was sitting there, seemingly guarding closed box hanging off the side of Sousuke’s desk. Rin suddenly felt awkward.

“Sousuke,” Rin started, unsure of how to proceed. “Is there, uh, something you want to talk about?”

“Not really. We could watch a movie, if you want. The DVD player should still work fine,” Sousuke said. “Didn’t you want to watch Princess Mononoke last week?”

He picked up a magazine he’d left on his floor the last time he’d come home, barely remembering it. He flipped through it as Rin narrowed his eyes at him.

“That’s not what I mean. Sousuke! Where the hell did you get all this Rilakkuma merchandise?” Rin said, cutting to the chase.

Sousuke looked over the top of the magazine, shrugging. He grinned a little when Rin didn’t look at all appeased. If anything if looked on the verge of pouting. Sousuke held out a few more moments before answering him.

“I’ve been collecting it for years. It never seemed important enough to tell anyone, anyway. It is what it is,” Sousuke said. “I have a vague idea but its kind of just ended up this way.”

Rin rolled his eyes, sitting up and shoving himself next to Sousuke on the bed. The both of them barely fit now as grown as they were. But some elbowing and rearranging until Rin was sprawling across Sousuke and blocking his view of the screen was how it had ended up being. Sousuke only hummed, more content to sleep anyway until Rin’s inevitable crying from the movie would more than likely rouse him up again.

-

The thing was, Sousuke wasn’t even completely sure how he’d gotten so deep into collecting Rilakkuma things. It had started out with a day out with Gou during middle school and had escalated throughout the years. He still remembered when she’d asked him to come shopping with her the day, and he had readily agreed. They had seen each other less and less with his swim club activities in full swing and regionals around the corner. But there was no way he was going to pass up spending a day with Gou.

“Sousuke-kun,” Gou called. “Here you go. I won it for you.”

Gou dropped the little bear plushie into Sousuke’s hands, beaming at him proudly. Gou had always been good at the UFO catcher, much more so than Rin in all honestly, so he was barely surprised when she’d come away with so many prizes. She’d won matching toys for her and a friend, the bear for Sousuke, and one, though she didn’t say it, for Rin.

Sousuke looked down at the bear. It’s black, round eyes stared back at Sousuke rather emptily. But it was cute nonetheless. He smiled up at Gou, thanking her. Gou hummed, hooking her hands behind her back. The plushies were stuffed into her shopping bag at her feet. She grinned a little teasingly.

“I thought you’d like Rilakkuma the best, Sousuke-kun,” Gou said. “You two have the same attitude, I think.”

Sousuke looked at her funny for a moment, then at the bear. He pretended to imitate the expression, earning a giggle from Gou before ruffling her hair. She pouted before fixing it back, and elbowing him softly in the side.

“Well, as long as it’s you that gave it to me, I’ll always treasure it,” Sousuke simply said. He held up the bear again. “You wanted a parfait, right? My treat for Rilakkuma.”

Gou brightened at that. She quickly picked up her shopping bag and they took off jogging and laughing towards the ice cream shop a few shops down from the arcade in Sano. Sousuke kept his Rilakkuma shoved in his pants pocket the entire time, the little bear’s head peeking out as if in interest.

When he got home, after walking Gou back to her house and politely declining dinner with both Matsuoka women, Sousuke put the bear on his desk. It guarded the box of Rin’s letters he kept there.

-

The next time Sousuke encountered the little bear, he was accompanying his mother shopping. He had seen Rilakkuma’s face on a bento and picked it up without any thought. Rilakkuma, and the white little bear he had come to know as Korilakkuma, were having a picnic on the transparent lid of the bento. It was two-tiered and came with its own Rilakkuma face printed chopsticks, if he was reading the box correctly. Sousuke checked the price quickly and bought it while his mother was still sorting through shoes a few aisles down.

“For a sibling?” The cashier asked, grinning politely.

Sousuke nodded. “Yeah. My little sister,” Sousuke said. It wasn’t a lie, anyway.

When he and his mother had returned home, Sousuke had put it down on a shelf since he reasoned Gou would appreciate it in a little bag, and then quickly forgot about it. It probably got buried under piles of clothes and piles of crushed up paper from letters Sousuke had started a million times but never written.

Each time he went out with Gou for the day, she would win him a new Rilakkuma and he would add it to the growing pile in the corner of his room. There was nearly one for every season, too. Eventually the plushies became a blanket, and then an umbrella he never used.

-

A few weeks into the new term, Gou had come over when he had agreed to go shopping with her. He had been preoccupied with the swim club lately and they hadn’t had any time to hang out. But he had promised her a day out and he was intent on keeping it that way. She barely batted an eye at the growing collection, except for maybe an amused smile.

“You still have him here,” Gou said, taking up the little bear.

She had followed Sousuke into his room after he’d told her he needed to try and find his wallet, lingering at his bedroom door. Gou had been over countless times over the years, so Sousuke had little need to feel embarrassed about her being there. She had spotted the bear she’d won him a few weeks back, and moved towards his desk. She turned it over in her hands, grinning contently with how well Sousuke had kept it. In contrast to her own brother, Sousuke was a little better at keeping things intact. Rin had a tendency to break things accidentally out of sheer excitement.

“Of course,” Sousuke said, absently. “I couldn’t have him treated like everything else in this room.”

Gou laughed, replacing the bear in his original spot. Sousuke dug into the pile of jeans he’d dumped on the computer chair. He was three jeans in when he spoke up again.

“Did you send the one you won the other day to Rin?” Sousuke asked.

“Yeah, I even added in some of the power bars he’s been craving in the box, too,” Gou said. “It should have reached by now. Tell me what he says in his next letter.”

Sousuke cleared his throat, a light flush on his cheeks. Gou snickered to his side, having seen the box of letters when she’d put the bear back.

“I bet his letter will come any day anyway,” Gou said with a hum.

She pulled his wallet out from behind where it was cushioned on a korilakuma plushie. She pulled it back just as he was reaching to grab it before dropping it in his hands again. She patted him on the arm.

“We’ll have to stop by the arcades before the day is done, don’t you think? Gou prompted, leading the way out of his room.

Sousuke shoved his wallet and his hands into his pockets. “If that’s what you want,” He said, feigning disinterest, and laughing when Gou shot him a pout. A typical Matsuoka pout, he thought, thinking how similar it was to Rin’s. Gou’s had a little more puff to the cheeks.

Sousuke held out his arm for her, and Gou gladly took it, giggling as they strode down the stairs. They had to angle with Sousuke’ s new widening shoulders, but the fumbling and laughing was worth the funny look his mother gave them. He called out over his shoulder to her to lock the door and hurried down the sidewalk with Gou.

-

Rin had glanced down in momentary wonder when Sousuke had showed up to the Samezuka natatorium, two bentos in hand. Rin had the go-ahead to practice there while Nitori and the team were out for a Hell Week of training. He had Sousuke just as much, and wasn’t all together too surprised when his friend had showed up half way through his practice with lunch.. _Correction,_ Rin’s mind supplied, in two rilakkuma bentos. Stuffed to the brim inside each was tonkatsu. Sousuke had settled himself down on one of the benches as Rin took his place back at the starting block and waited for the clock to count down.

Sousuke leaned back, long legs stretched out as he eyed the clock and Rin’s poised form. When the clock hit zero, Rin dove in, shooting through the water with ferocious ease. He hit the the other side, kicking off and making a beeline to the other side where Sousuke sat.

He pushed himself up out of the pool, tearing off his goggles and swim cap to see Sousuke holding up the bento meant for him. He put it back down on the bench and tossed Rin his towel with a wry grin.

“Not bad, Mr. Former Captain,” Sousuke said. “You made a new personal best. You’ll have something to boast about when you start uni.”

Rin nodded towards the lunches. He had a tease of his own on the tip of his tongue about his choice in boxing, but let it go. His friend had clearly loved the little character well enough. At least it was a cuter alternative to the Iwatobi mascot Haru liked. He placed the one meant for him in his lap, removing the cover.

“Did you cook it yourself?” Rin said, instead; The teasing tone had remained. “Or did you get lazy and ask you dad?”

Sousuke’s large hand closed itself over the top, lifting it in one fluid motion as Rin squawked. He moved to try and swipe it back as Sousuke took a bite out of his pork with an indignant look.

“If you’re going to be rude about it, Rin,” Sousuke said, trailing off.

“Your parents own a restaurant, you big baby!” Rin said, before stealing Sousuke’s bento in retaliation. “They can cook you up anything you want!”

“Doesn’t mean you can doubt my cooking skills, Rin. You really hurt me,” Sousuke said, pressing his hand to his heart in mock hurt.

Rin glanced down at the hand Sousuke had against his chest to see Rilakkuma’s face printed on the tips of his chopsticks. Rin waved a hand, dismissing his dramatics. Sousuke only grinned and brought another piece of pork up to his mouth. Rin dove in quickly, stealing the bite from him and rocking back to his place and chewing innocently. Sousuke scowled.

“See if I ever cook for you again, Rin Matsuoka,” Sousuke grumbled childishly. “Stealing a man’s food is like stealing his honor.”

“I don’t even know why I bother with you, honestly,” Rin muttered.

They ate in relative peace after that. At least up until Sousuke took a moment too long staring at the last piece he had in his bento and then offered it out to Rin like a peace-offering at the tip of his chopsticks.

“Truce?” Sousuke said, grinning.

Rin huffed, but nodded. “Truce,” He replied.

He opened his mouth, feeling the bit of pork hit his bottom lip before it was falling away and Rin was yelping. He barely snatched it back with his teeth, nearly biting into his own lip in the process. Sousuke howled with laughter and nearly fell from the bench.

Rin pushed him off for good measure. “I’m expecting you to learn how to properly feed someone something while I’m away, you jerk” Rin said.

“Or what?” Sousuke prompted, with a groan. He sat up and hung his arms on his knees.

“Or – uh – Or,” Rin said, floundering. “Or I won’t get you that Korilakkuma mug I saw the other day when I went shopping with Gou!”

Sousuke looked stunned for a moment. Rin bit into his lower lip as they stared at each other for a moment, unmoving. Then Sousuke held his hands up in defeat. Rin felt his shoulders sag and the breath he didn’t know he was holding release. Sousuke cocked his head to the side as he dropped his hands again.

“Fine, its a deal then. You get me the mug, and I’ll learn all that shoujo stuff you like so much,” Sousuke joked.

Rin threw the chopsticks at his face.

-

Later in the week, Sousuke had texted Rin that his physical therapy during the week hadn’t gone as well as he’d have liked it. His therapist had suggested a little more strain and his shoulder hadn’t reacted too well to it. It was a minor setback all in all, but it still left Sousuke far too gloomy for Rin’s liking.

He ran over the moment he’d gotten the confirmation that Sousuke had made it home. It was a good thing the Yamazakis lived so close by, he reasoned. Partly for Sousuke’s sake, and partly for reasons like this, Rin thought. Two knocks on the door later and Sousuke’s mom was poking her head around the door. She smiled kindly.

“He’s up in his room brooding,” She said with a sigh. “Maybe you can cheer him up, Rin-kun. He only grumbles when I talk to him.”

Rin laughed a little, as he excused himself and took off his shoes at the door. He ducked his head when Mrs. Yamazaki patted his shoulder in sympathy for her broody son’s mood. Rin could see the lines of worry on her face, though. It had to be hitting her just as hard about her son’s shoulder though she didn’t voice it. She promised him a good lunch later for his efforts for both of them, and headed back to the living room to finish a show Rin’s mother also liked on the TV.

Rin ruffled his ponytail a bit as he ascended the stairs and headed towards Sousuke’s room. He gave a bare minimum knock, before shouldering his way into his friend’s room. Sousuke laid spread out on his bed, glaring at the the wall his desk was pushed up against. Rin leaned against the door, watching Sousuke’s gaze flicker to him and away as he kept his mouth screwed shut. He went to sit by him on the bed.

“Don’t be too upset, Sou. You’ve been doing really well lately anyway,” He said. 

Sousuke grumbled under his breath, throwing an arm over his face so Rin couldn’t see his face anymore. He watched the sharp incline of Sousuke’s shoulders, as he tensed anticipating the Rin was holding out to touch him with. Rin retracted his hand, letting it drop in his lap again. He glanced over at the Rilakkuma jammed in the corner of Sousuke’s bed, staring at him. Rin looked down at Sousuke and then at the bear again.

Rin got up and headed to the pile at the other end of Sousuke’s room. He scooped up a couple of them and moved back towards the bed. He laid one bear between the junction of Sousuke’s neck and shoulder, the little nose dropping against his cheek. He wiggled on under his arm until it was pressing nose to nose with Sousuke in that dark cave he had created. He laid one bear after another down Sousuke’s body, before going back and taking a couple more up to pile on top of him some more. He saw Sousuke peeking out at him a couple times before ducking his head down again, trying to keep up his broody mood. Rin snapped a picture before his friend could pop his head back up again. Finally, Rin knelt down where Sousuke face was.

“It’s just one set back, Sou,” Rin whispered. “You’ve endured much more. You can get through this too. Don’t give up before you’ve even really begun to try.”

Sousuke peeked out from the pile of Rilakkumas he was buried under, teal eye crinkling. Rin could spot a faint smile from underneath there, as Souske uncurled himself. He pressed one of the Rilakkumas noses against Rin’s.

“That’s exactly what you would say,” Sousuke said with an almost sigh. “Thanks, Rin.”

Rin pushed the bear to lower a bit so he could look Sousuke in the eye. “Anytime,” He murmured.

Before he knew what he was thinking, he leaned forward a few more inches and pressed his lips to the curve of Sousuke’s cheek. When he pulled away, it wasn’t even a full few seconds before Sousuke was pulling him back in for a proper kiss.

-

“Gou, I really need your help,” Sousuke said. “I’m at the UFO catcher in that arcade we used to go to and I suck.”

Sousuke fought back a small embarrassed blush when Gou’s laugh came through clear on his cell phone. He tapped the tip of his shoe against the machine, peeved. Gou told him to hold on a moment as she called to someone and presumably walked away.

“So you need my expertise to help you, is that it?” Gou teased. “Usually you wait for me to get you one.”

“Usually,” Sousuke admitted, sheepishly. “But Rin’s going away in a few days and I just -”

He swallowed as a small wave of embarrassment overtook him. Gou’s knowing hum came through over the phone as she waited for him to continue. He could already imagine her rocking on her feet and sporting an all-knowing grin. Sousuke chuckled despite himself. There was no reason to be embarrassed with Gou.

“I wanted to get him matching bears,” Sousuke said. “I, uh, saw it in an old shoujo manga you guys left here a few years back that I found the other day.”

“Oh?” Gou said, trying to search her memory. “Which one?”

“Card Captor Sakura. Sakura gives Syaoran a bear before he goes away to Hong Kong. They named the bears after each other. So I thought Rin might like that, too. We used to watch it a lot as kids, anyway.”

“Sousuke-kun,” Gou said, emotion catching Sousuke off guard.. “That’s the sweetest thing ever! Brother is going to love it. I’ll be over right away. First, I have to make sure he doesn’t get suspicious. You know how he is.”

“Yeah, I know. Take your time, I’m not going anywhere right now, anyway,” He said.

Fifteen minutes later, Gou rounded the corner into the shop, the strap of her purse drooping over her shoulder. Sousuke hooked it back up on her shoulder as she grinned at him. He passed her the money for the machine as Gou rolled up her sleeves.

“Which ones were you aiming for?” She asked, taking a hold of the joystick.

“The Rilakkuma over there and the Korilakkuma right next to it,” He said.

Gou flashed him a thumbs up, and set the claw right above the first bear. She lowered it, grabbing at it and then flipping it into the opening. Sousuke whistled beside her, bending to grab the bear and put more money in. Sousuke held out a fist and Gou bumped it back. It took her even less time to get the Korilakkuma. She turned to look at her companion, a bear under each arm. Sousuke smiled and bent to kiss the top of her head.

“Thanks, Gou. I knew I could count on you,” Sousuke said.

Gou beamed at him, raising her arm in a mock muscle flex. Sousuke laughed; he motioned to the exit of the arcade with a grin.

“Might as well reward you for all your hard work. Throw in the towel, Matsuoka. Good hustle.”

Gou rolled her eyes affectionately. “You’re worse than brother sometimes.”

Sousuke could only shoot her a sheepish grin when she pulled on his arm into the correct direction of the ice cream parlor. They leaned against each other with Gou’s arm pillowed against Sousuke’s arm. He pulled her in for a side hug as they pushed against each other as they headed down the sidewalk. Gou ducked her head under his arm, gripping the hem of his shirt like she used do to him and Rin as children out of habit.

“Text me his reaction later, okay?” She said.

“Of course.”

-

If he didn’t think Rin would give him so much grief, Sousuke would have probably taken a picture of Rin sprawled out over that huge Rilakkuma jammed in the corner of his bed. He’d laid down on his belly, suffocating what little life was left in the bear, presumably texting either Makoto or Nagisa about something or otherr; Haru hardly used his phone, if Sousuke remembered correctly. He pushed both bears under his right arm before making his way over to Rin. He settled down on the edge of the bed next to Rin’s hip. Then he laid back across Rin’s back and effectively pinned him down. Rin’s indignant squawk was worth the elbow to the gut.

“Gou and I were at the arcade today,” Sousuke said, nonchalantly. “We were messing around with the UFO Catcher.”

“Yeah? Using my sister to add more to your already enormous collection, are you?” Rin teased, a kind grin on his face.

Sousuke smiled back; “Kind of.”

He picked up one of the bears, setting it down next to Rin. Rin looked at it quizzically, patiently waiting for Sousuke’s explanation.

“This one’s staying with me,” Sousuke explained. “I’m naming it ‘Rin’.”

Rin’s eyes brows rose but he said nothing. Sousuke placed the other bear next to the first one.

“This one’s for you to take with you when you go back to Australia. They’re a matching pair, you know,” Sousuke said. He looked up at Rin expectantly.

He had to chuckle a bit when Rin’s eyes suddenly went glassy and he began to sniffle. He picked up the second bear, tears already collecting in the corners of his eyes as everything dawned on him. Rin had, after all, gushed as a child that he hoped someday someone would pull a Sakura and Syaoran on him, too. Rin pressed his nose into the bear’s tummy, a stray tear sinking into its plush fur.

“I’ll have to name it 'Sousuke’ then, won’t I?” Rin said, with a watery laugh.

Rin twisted impatiently, holding out his arms until Sousuke had to rise up on his elbows and roll to meet him in a tight hug. Rin pressed his face into Sousuke’s neck, stray tears dropping into the collar of his shirt. Sousuke petted the back of his hair, hushing him softly. Rin pulled back, tear tracks lining his cheeks as he smiled bright enough to make Sousuke’s chest squeeze and his stomach flutter. It was always that way when Rin smiled at him. He pushed his forehead to rest against Sousuke’s.

“I really, really like you, Rin,” Sousuke mumbled. “Make me proud out there.”

Rin pressed their foreheads a little harder together, the tips of his eyelashes sweeping against Sousuke’s cheeks. Sousuke thumbed away a tear that was still at the corner of his eye.

“You won’t have to worry about that,” He said; he pecked him quickly on the mouth. “And…I really, really like you, too.”

Gou got a text later with a picture attached to Sousuke and Rin squished against each other, and their bears barely peeking into view.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/141436670218/sousuke-has-a-rilakkuma-collection-and-rin-finds


	2. SouRin: Rilakkuma

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sousuke & Haru try sharing a bed.

Haru sighed long and suffering as he stared up at his bedroom ceiling. The faint light from the glow in the dark stars Nagisa had cowed them all into putting up blinked back at him. Haru grunted trying to shift out from underneath the massive heating pad that was Sousuke Yamazaki currently cutting off circulation on his right side. The heat might have been welcome before with the encroaching fall chill, but Haru was sweating through his light pajamas due to Sousuke’s almost unbearable heat. Haru turned to look at him as best he could, tempted to bite down on his ear to rouse him.

“Yamazaki,” Haru grumbled. “Get off. You’re heavy.”

Sousuke made no motion to show that he had heard, though Haru was aware he wasn’t asleep either. The hand petting at his hip absently told him that much. Haru’s hand paused for a moment over Sousuke’s right shoulder before sliding it down to nudge at his ribs. Sousuke barely budged.

“Yamazaki,” Haru said, more firmly, a little louder.

Sousuke huffed; more amused than anything, but didn’t make any other effort to get off of Haru. He took a hold of Haru’s hand and interlocked their fingers before pressing it down against the mattress. Haru squirmed under him. If he fidgeted enough he could annoy Sousuke into moving. Sousuke only raised his head up to look at him, droopy-eyed and smug even through his exhaustion.

“Naw,” Sousuke said. “I’m comfortable. Now stop talking, I’m trying to sleep.”

He let his head drop back down then pressed his nose into the side of Haru’s jaw.

“This is _my_ bed,” Haru groused.

“So?”

“_Sousuke_. Off.”

Sousuke clicked his tongue, but reluctantly rolled off of Haru. He kicked away the sheets childishly as he flopped over on his back. He grabbed a hold of the back of Haru’s shirt and yanked him over him. Haru’s chin knocked against his chest and he nearly bit his tongue. Sousuke didn’t have to open his eyes to know Haru was shooting him an icy glare. He squirmed some more just to piss off Sousuke until he was threatening to buck him off.

“Better?” Sousuke said, cheeky. “_Haru_.”

Haru scoffed lightly. He pressed his ear over Sousuke’s heart. He reached back to where Sousuke’s hand was still gripped into the fabric of his shirt so he could press their palms together against the bed.

“Shut up,” Haru said, finally. “I’m trying to sleep.”

-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/114858831363/sousuke-haru-try-sharing-a-bed-haru-sighed-long


	3. Sano Trio: Sousuke Sandwich

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sano Trio. Rin and Kisumi pamper Sousuke.

Sousuke was cute. There was no denying it despite how fervently Sousuke himself liked to argue about it. He was adorable and far too easy to fluster, despite how he adamantly tried to play himself off as a dark, brooding figure. In the early mornings, Rin had decided that Sousuke was especially adorable with his bed-head and half-lidded eyes. It was one of the few times he was so openly vulnerable, still too drowsy from sleep to pronounce anything right or to completely even know where he was.

Where he was was cushioned between Kisumi and Rin in their bed. Maybe no one would ever think so but Sousuke actually enjoyed being the little spoon. Squished up between Kisumi and Rin, even as large as he was, he pressed his back up against Kisumi’s chest and dug his face into the curve of Rin’s neck. Kisumi peeked from over Sousuke’s shoulder, light blue eyes sparkling as he looked between Sousuke and Rin and his smile grew wider. Rin snorted before propping himself up on his elbow and running a hand through Sousuke’s hair. Kisumi leaned over Sousuke’s shoulder and pressed his nose into the curve of Sousuke’s cheek.

Kisumi kissed his way to his ear, down his neck and up across his shoulder. Each kiss he pressed down lasted a few seconds longer than the other. He came back down across his shoulder blade and over towards his hip where his sweatpants hung low. Sousuke squirmed, pushing his face further into Rin’s neck.

Rin pushed Sousuke’s bangs until he was gently forcing Sousuke’s face up and away from him and back against the pillow. Sousuke blinked sluggishly, still too befuddled in between sleep and awake. Rin kissed his forehead, over his eyelids and on the corners of his mouth. Rin stroked under his chin, only because it always made Sousuke feel tingly and uncomfortable. Sousuke’s squeezed his eyes closed as he buried his face into the pillow.

“Lea’ me alone,” Sousuke slurred. “Go away.”

Kisumi laughed lightly and slipped underneath Sousuke’s arm to start kissing at his cheek again. Sousuke groaned. He reluctantly rolled over onto his back and blinked at the two of them, a frown settling between his eyebrows and on his lips.

“I’m up, I’m up,” He said. “Please stop now.”

Kisumi and Rin took one look at each other and then at him and dove in as Sousuke yelped in defeat.

\- 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/118738763058/sano-trio-rin-and-kisumi-pamper-sousuke-sousuke


	4. SouMakoHaruRin: Sousuke Loving Hours

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The one where Sousuke is basically a big, lazy stray who gets spoiled by Haru, Makoto and Rin.
> 
> Platonic or Romantic, up to you.

Haru didn’t look up from the stove when he heard his front door open and heavy shuffling coming from the entryway. Sousuke grunted something Haru didn’t really catch but assumed was the usual greeting as he made his way to Haru’s living room to curl up on his couch and take a nap. He heard the tell tale sound of Sousuke’s big figure falling back on the couch, the sound of the sheet Haru may or may not have left there specifically for him being unfolded with a sound snap, and then Sousuke’s sigh as he settled down.

Sousuke always sighed before he fell asleep. Haru rolled his eyes, wishing he knew when so much had changed. He added in an extra bit of fish for Sousuke regardless, finding it had become habit rather than annoyance.

Shortly following the Samezuka Cultural Festival, several things had become apparent about Sousuke Yamazaki. First was that he was much more lax than one thought. If he could settle himself down somewhere and become comfortable, he’d go straight to sleep. Second was that he loved to be spoiled. Big, grumpy Sousuke liked to be pampered. Third was that Sousuke was a big, whiny affectionate baby. A guy as big as Sousuke was actually as needy as they came when he wanted to be.

Sousuke had showed up at Haru’s front door a week after the festival. He had probably gotten there after many, many errors before Makoto had supposedly came to his rescue and deposited him there before heading on his way with the twins for the day out he had promised them. Sousuke had scuffed his foot there on the stoop, refusing to look at Haru before holding out a bag of a plastic container full of grilled saba towards him and the request to share it with him.

Haru had been taken a back. They were now on better terms, but he was assuming this meant that they’d simply just be nodding easily at each other and continuing on their way. He invited Sousuke in and they sat around his little low table together to eat Sousuke’s cooking.

“It’s a bit too salty,” Haru had muttered. He took three more bites though, looking rather content.

“_You’re _too salty,” Sousuke had quipped with a slight laugh.

Haru had looked up mid chew in surprise before hiding a wry grin to himself and eating more. He huffed a snicker and Sousuke cracked his own grin. They spent the rest of the meal alternating between silences and snarking at each other.

A few days later following some nagging or other from Rin, that much Haru had deduced, Sousuke had showed up, laid down on his couch and took a nap. Haru just kept reading his book. That was that, then.

Haru turned off the stove and scraped out the fish into two separate plates. He untied his apron and hung it up on the hook before heading to the low table to put both plates on. Then, Haru went to kneel by Sousuke. He snuffled in his sleep, head ducked under Haru’s dolphin fleece blanket. His feet poked out from the bottom. Haru thought about it a moment before he stood up and sat down on Sousuke’s side, half on his hip and half on the side of his belly. Sousuke grunted unhappily but didn’t push him off.

“Sousuke,” Haru said. “Wake up. I’m not cooking again today. Makoto wants me over for dinner.”

Sousuke grumbled and screwed his eyes further shut. Haru rolled his eyes and tore the sheet from Sousuke’s face. Sousuke shot him a sleepy glare. It hadn’t worked the first time he had done it and even now Haru could barely believe he’d ever been intimidated by Sousuke at any point in time with how lazy he really was. Haru only petted at his hair, smoothing it down as Sousuke sighed in resignation. He kept petting Sousuke’s hair until he was finally rising up on his elbows. Sousuke sat up, rubbing at his eyes before following Haru out of the room.

“Tomorrow I’ll make tonkatsu,” Haru mumbled into his food. “But you have to help.”

Sousuke nodded around his food. “That’s fine. I’ll bring the ingredients then.”

They ate the rest of their meal in a comfortable silence.

-

Sano wasn’t very far from Iwatobi, Makoto noted. It was a only two stops away by train. Makoto flipped open his phone to see the message Rin had sent him containing Sousuke’s home address and how to get there. Makoto doubled checked it before heading out from the station and into Sano.

He’d taken a wrong turn or two a few times but all in all made it rather easily to Sousuke’s doorstep. Makoto readjusted his bag on his shoulder before using the back of his knuckles to knock on the door. Short, dark-haired woman answered the door looking up at him in surprise. Her eyes were a bright teal, and when she smiled, Makoto could see faint wrinkles. Makoto could see where Sousuke got that faint, soft smile of his.

“Makoto-kun, I take it?” She said. “Rin told me that’d you be coming.”

Makoto smiled back, excusing himself as he took his shoes off at the door and followed after Sousuke’s mom into the kitchen. Mrs. Yamazaki poured some soup into a bowl and set it on a tray next to what Makoto assumed was medicine. A stack of other containers full of food were on the counter with a big brown paper bag next to it. Mrs Yamazaki turned to Makoto with a drawn out sigh as she closed her eyes.

“It’s a relief that you’re here, Makoto-kun,” She said. “He rarely gets sick but it’s always such a hassle when he does. I have to go and see his grandfather today, actually, so I’ve been worried about leaving him by himself.”

She pointed up at the ceiling, presumably to where Sousuke’s room was. She shielded her mouth with her hand as she leaned in to whisper to Makoto. Makoto leaned in, too.

“Don’t mind too much, Makoto-kun. Sou can be a a little..troublesome when he’s sick. Be strong!” She said.

Makoto only laughed. “I’m sure I’ll be fine. But thank you. Do you need helping carrying the food?”

Mrs. Yamazaki waved her hand. She told him it’d be fine. She wasn’t as big as her son, but she was capable of lifting more than she looked like she could. She handed the tray of soup to Makoto and told him that Sousuke’s father would eventually come home to relieve him, if she didn’t first. 

“Up the stairs and the second door on your left,” She said, and went to loading the food into the bag.

Makoto pressed his ear to the door as he gently knocked, only getting a groan before he was opening the door. Wrapped from head to two in at least two blankets was Sousuke, nose red and runny and his eyes red-rimmed. He looked up at Makoto from his nest and squinted.

“Ta – _Ma'goto_?” Sousuke said, voice funny with his nose stuffed up. He coughed and rattled the bed.

Makoto put the food down on Sousuke’s desk as he pulled the desk chair around to sit by Sousuke’s bedside. Sousuke turned his head, trying to make sense of why he was there.

“Hi, Sousuke, I heard you were sick,” Makoto said, with a tiny wave. “Your mom made soup.”

“Who tol’ you?” Sousuke said, eyes narrowing. “Dam’ it was Rin, wasn’t it? Doesn’t he have anything better to do?”

“Sousuke,” Makoto jokingly admonished. “He cares about you, that’s why I’m here.”

“A whole town ov’r?” Sousuke muttered. He sneezed and groaned.

Makoto shrugged, he reached under the sheets to grab Sousuke under his arms. Sousuke burned under the sheets, flinching at Makoto’s slightly cold hands and struggling a bit as he was hoisted into a sitting position. Makoto swiveled in the chair to grab the soup and put it on Sousuke’s lap. Sousuke looked down at it, and scrunched his nose.

“It’s too hot,” Sousuke said childishly. “I’ll burn myself.”

“Do you want me to feed you, Sousuke-kun?” Makoto said too sweetly.

Sousuke grimaced, though he looked serious in requesting it. He childishly looked up from the soup to Makoto. “Drop the -kun,” He muttered. “It wouldn’t kill you to pity the sick a little, though, Makoto.”

Makoto fixed him with a knowing look, one that made Sousuke look away in embarrassment. Sousuke took up the spoon and blew on the soup as he slowly began eating. Sousuke looked contemplatively as he at another few spoonfuls. He sniffled a few times, though Makoto thought a little more than necessary until he was handing him tissues and rubbing his back when he got into a coughing fit.

“Don’t tell Haru, but I thin’ he cooks better than my mom,” Sousuke mumbled. “He doesn’t need to know.”

Makoto hummed. “Your secret is safe with me.”

Sousuke and Makoto had grown closer sometime after the festival. He’d personally asked Rin for his number a day after, anticipating that Sousuke couldn’t be that much different than Haru on the texting front. (He was right). It came in handy the day he’d gotten lost on his way to Haru’s house. Subsequently after that he’d started to text a little more, just a few words, until there were times when he’d agree to meet Makoto to discuss swimming tips while he continued to volunteer at Iwatobi SCR.

He reached into his bag, however, and pulled out a container. He popped open the lid before addressing Sousuke.

“Haru made something for you when he heard you were sick, but you didn’t hear it from me. I think it was his way of wishing you to get well soon,” Makoto said.

Sousuke scoffed jokingly. “I’m sure he did. He texted yesterday to tell me that I need to come and clean up the stuff I left at his house.”

Makoto snickered, “You’ll have to get better first or you can’t eat this. Here, take your medicine.”

Sousuke scowled at it and continued eating the soup before pushing it away. Makoto took the tray back from Sousuke. Sousuke pointed to the controllers on top of his desk, raising a brow at him.

“If you beat me, I’ll take the medicine. If I win, I get to eat what Haru made instead,” Sousuke challenged, sniffling loudly.

Makoto smiled, watching Sousuke’s eyes widen as if he’d realized he’d made a bad mistake before tossing the controller into his hands. Makoto booted up the system and grinned at Sousuke.

“May the best man win, Sousuke-kun,” Makoto said.

Rin heard all about Makoto’s win from Sousuke later in a series of short, whiny texts.

-

Rin glared down at Sousuke, arms wrapped around Sousuke’s bulky body as he tried to squirm himself closer still against Rin. They had moved out of Samezuka following Rin’s transfer of captaincy to Ai and graduation. He and Sousuke had moved back to their homes in Sano to wait the time before everyone would be heading off to college. There were things left unsaid, undone, and Rin wasn’t in the mood to make himself cry at the moment. He had other pressing issues, such as the big baby cutting off circulation to his limbs.

Gou and his mother had gone for the weekend, something about winning a weekend trip prize that would leave Rin home alone in his childhood room. Naturally he had invited Sousuke, since he’d only lived a small distance away, and he was sure Sousuke would be doing absolutely nothing anyway.

Sousuke had come over, ignored Rin’s questions about what movie he wanted to watch, or if he wanted to go eat out at a local shop Gou had been gushing about, and then he’d simply pinned Rin down and took a damn nap.

“Rin,” Sousuke whined. “_Riiin._”

“What, you big baby,” Rin groused. Sousuke whined his name a few more times until Rin had threatened to bite him on the nose. “Out with it.”

Sousuke squirmed a bit trying to readjust himself as Rin muttered at him to stop moving so much he was uprooting Rin, there wasn’t that much space on this old bed for two nearly grown ass men. Sousuke sleepily blinked at him and then pouted.

“Stroke my hair, Rin,” Sousuke said. “Rin, come on.”

Rin rolled his eyes. He struggled a bit under the weight of Sousuke’s body before he was able to free his arm and bring it to scratch at the back of Sousuke’s head. He ran his fingers up the back of his skull and along the top of his hair. Sousuke sighed contently.

“How’s that?” Rin muttered. Sousuke patted his shoulder in thanks.

Rin had thought that Sousuke’s penchant for hugging his pillow close to him as a kid, back at the dorms was kind of funny, cute even. Sousuke had one pillow meant to sleep on, and then one he usually cushioned against himself, wrapped around it like an octopus. Rin had enough pictures in his phone to fill up his Instagram.

It wasn’t so cute now, though. Mainly because Sousuke was actually such a _needy _guy. No one would ever suspect, Rin realized. No one would think big, stoic, tight-lipped Sousuke was painfully affectionate. But only in private. When he wanted affection, he’d drop his chin on Rin’s shoulder, or tug at the hem of his shirt, plead at him to tuck him in sometimes. It’d eventually escalated to cuddling, and really even Rin wasn’t adverse to cuddling if he was being honest. Any time Rin had wanted to go for a run, Sousuke would just grab him by the back of his shirt and pout and go, “Rin, I want to cuddle,” and Rin would unfortunately melt and let Sousuke lay his head on his chest. He would stroke his hair, and whisper nothing and everything because it made Sousuk so at ease. It was barely any wonder how it’d escalated this much.

Sousuke stirred again and Rin scowled. He pulled at the back of Rin’s shirt, trying to draw him closer again as if he wasn’t already sucking away Rin’s heat and putting his damn cold toes into the back of his legs.

“Rin,” Sousuke muttered. “Rin, hey, Rin.”

“What now?” Rin said. “You don’t want a story now do you?”

“Rin, thanks,” Sousuke said before yawning. “I’m glad you indulge me sometimes.”

Rin groaned, pulled Sousuke’s head into the crook of his neck and exhaling sharply. Sousuke chuckled breathlessly, something akin to a kiss pressed to his neck. Sousuke didn’t need to see how bright Rin’s cheeks were but mostly because Sousuke deserved a bigger hug for being so disgustingly adorable.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/137835924958/the-one-where-sousuke-is-basically-a-big-lazy


	5. SouMakoHaru: Sakamichi no Apollon AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SouMakoHaru short fic. 
> 
> Haruka moves to a new town and somehow makes friends with a “deliquent” named Sousuke, and a sweet boy named Makoto. Sakamichi No Apollon AU. 
> 
> possibly tbc

Haru remembered looking blankly at his room when his parents had called to tell him that he would be moving to Sasebo to live with his uncle. It had only been a week since his grandmother had died and already he was being uprooted. He had learned to accept it, though, despite how much he’d _finally_ become accustomed and comfortable living with his grandmother, smiling. Haru gathered his meager things (his swimsuit, some sheet music, and too small gloves his grandmother had knitted a long time ago), and patiently waited to be transported to Kyushu as per his parents’ request.

A new school, a new city, a new life, again. Haru closed his eyes and exhaled. He didn’t like change, but as long as he had water and a piano, he could be free and some things could stay the same.

Haru’s uncle lived in a huge but mostly empty mansion. The only other people were one old butler, his aunt with the stick up her ass, and his bratty cousin who succeeded in getting Haru scolded for apparently being “inconsiderate” and using a piano that was just for show. The smallest of blessings came in the form of his own bathroom attached to his room. He spent the hours before he was nagged down for dinner soaking chin deep in water and wishing he could float away.

Come morning he would start a new school.

-

Nothing had changed, even if the settings did. The other kids stared at him, smelling the affluence coming off of him despite Haru’s own disregard for it. It wasn’t as if the money was his, after all. He kept them at a distance with a blank face and a dry glare. The only one who had bothered to approach him was a kind and dopey-eyed boy. He was probably one of the tallest kids Haru had ever seen. He extended his hand to Haru.

“Hi, I’m Makoto Tachibana,” He said. “I’m the Class Rep so I’ve been asked to show you around the school. Shall we go?”

Haru didn’t shake his hand but stood up anyway. He glanced up at Makoto then away.

“Haruka Nanase. Nice to meet you.”

Makoto simply smiled and pointed to outside the door of their classroom. “Let’s go then.”

Makoto was able to get through the courtyard, cafeteria, music rooms, and gym before Haru was fed up with people whispering and glancing at him. He normally never cared but he’ become far too tired now. He tugged on Makoto’s sleeve.

“Makoto,” Haru said. “How do I get to the pool?”

Makoto looked puzzled only for a moment before he was telling Haru about the pathway and then Haru was gone. Haru walked swiftly either weaving past people or causing them to shift out of his way. He kept his gaze fixated on the pathway, newly planted bushes lining its walkway until he nearly crashed into a roadblock of chairs and something wrapped up in a huge white sheet. Haru stopped. His hand hovered over the sheet before he finally yanked it away – and saw a boy.

The boy reached out for his hand, dwarfing Haru’s until his big, long fingers had completely engulfed his hand. He blinked up at Haru with sleepy, teal eyes and a faint grin. Haru’s breath caught in his throat. 

“Did you finally come for me?” He asked.

When he squeezed Haru’s hand, Haru suddenly felt warm all over. He didn’t try to take his hand back, either. 

The boy’s eyes seemed to focus, settling properly on Haru before he was sitting up, unconsciously tugging Haru forward as he regarded Haru critically. He dropped Haru’s hand and adjusted himself to seem “intimidating”.

“What’s the idea of holding a guy’s hand while he’s sleeping, huh?” the boy said.

Haru scowled, huffing in exasperation. “It was you that grabbed me, stupid,” Haru said. 

“Let me guess,” The boy said, still slurring slightly with sleep. “You’re the jerk who keeps stealing the natatorium key.”

“I don’t have the key,” Haru petulantly said.

When he stood, he towered over Haru until he had to crane his neck back to eet his gaze head on. Haru kept his face blank but stern, even as the other boy looked over his face and the corners of his mouth twitched upwards. 

“Let’s go at it, then. I’ll fight you for the key,” he said.

“I told you I don’t -”

“Yamazaki!” Another voice called. “You _are_ Yamazaki right? Heard you were looking for this.”

Another group of boys came up an adjacent pathway, their leader twirling a key ring along his index finger. Haru stepped back, glancing between Yamazaki and the other boys. He’d suddenly wished he’d simply stayed with Makoto. 

The group leader tossed the keys into the air before catching them, smirking at Yamazaki. “Too bad for you. The pool’s ours now.”

Haru stepped up before he could think better of it. “Wait a minute, I want to use the pool, too. Water isn’t meant to be selfishly kept.”

The leader looked at him puzzled for a moment before he and his boys were shouldering past Haru and Yamazaki. Haru stumbled back into Yamazaki as the leader sneered over his shoulder at him. Yamazaki’s hand unconsciously steadied then tightened on Haru’s shouder. 

“Sucks for you then, huh?” The leader called. 

They unlocked the doors to the pool and slammed it shut behind them. Yamazaki let his hand drop and shoved them into his pockets as he regarded Haru with a sidelong glance. 

“Do you want it that badly?” He muttered. 

Haru stared back at him, trying to discern his question. Haru only hesitated for a moment before he told him yes, he did. Yamazaki sighed dramatically before shoulderin in through the door and calling for Haru to wait a moment. Haru blinked before scrambling to a nearby window. Through the glass Haru saw Yamazaki’s fist collide with the leader’s chin, sending him straight to the floor. Another boy charged at him before he was kicking him away. Two took hold of Yamazaki’s arms, holding him back as another took a swing at his face; Haru winced, unsure if he should rush in and try and help or call for Makoto. Yamazaki rocked back on the other two, using momentum to kick the leader in the chest and free himself. He elbowed the one on his right, and then tackled the one on his left. Before long the bullies were all but tripping over theselves to escape the natatorium. Haru rushed in.

Yamazaki lay on the floor, bruised but somehow content. Haru’s hands hovered over his face, unsure if he should touch or not. Yamazaki’s eyes shifted to look at Haru’s. He grinned.

“You,” Haru started, “You - Why did you -”

Yamazaki held up the key ring and let it slide to drop in Haru’s lap. Haru cradled the key in his hands.

“You wanted that right?” Yamazaki said.

Haru’s lower lip trembled but nothing else. He touched the back of Yamazaki’s hand, and quietly said, “Thank you.”

-

Later, when Lunch was almost over, Haru came to realize that Yamazaki was in his class. He sat right behind him. Yamazaki cradled a bruised hand in his cheek as he grinned cheekily at Haru.

“Hello again, Nanase,” he said, surprising Haru. He hadn’t told the other boy his name. “Looks like I can think of a whole bunch of ways you can repay me now, huh?”

He reached for Haru’s sandwich and took a bite. Haru bit back a salty retort and only huffed and looked away. The natatorium key was warm in his breast pocket. 

-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/131029647528/soumakoharu-short-fic-haruka-moves-to-a-new-town


	6. MakoRin: Your Cat Is a Menace

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Your cat got mine pregnant take responsibility dammit AU” 
> 
> Makoto’s cat is a little too busy, and Rin demands retribution, but ends up with much more.

Rin clicked his tongue twice, peeking his head out of his apartment kitchen window as he beckoned his cat to him. Sakura had wandered into his life a year ago, petite and in need of a good bath and meal. It took a couple months of buttering her up, but Rin had succeeded in winning her trust with scattered bowls of food and feathered toys tied to his clothesline after she’d nearly shredded his good pair of pants simply to play with a piece of the thread hanging off of it. The harder part was bathing it, which had ended in a mild lose for Rin, but an ultimate win for the both of them. Under all that grime and dirt was a cream coat and patches of soft brown on her nose and paws. A little tip-toeing after that meant that Sakura had permanently come to call Rin’s little flat home, lounging in the window of his kitchen, and greeting him at the door when he returned home.

Only, Sakura was strangely nowhere to be seen.

Rin hadn’t worried much. She was free to come and go as she pleased (she had a tag and collar now after all), but usually she was rather good at showing up for dinner when Rin came home. She _never_ missed dinner.

Rin beckoned again, calling her name softly in hopes that maybe she was just being stubborn and lazing out in a dying patch of sun. Rin frowned and craned his neck outside the window. A flash of fluffy black fur caught Rin’s eye first. There on the fence separating the small compound of apartments from the main street was a black cat Rin hadn’t seen before. Next to said cat was Sakura, demurely licking her paw as the black cat seemed to be saying something to her.

Rin furrowed his brows, calling for Sakura again. She looked at him, glanced at the other cat, before taking off across the fence to bound into Rin’s arms and into the apartment. Rin eyed the black cat again as it peered lazily at him before shutting its eyes and napping where Sakura had left him. Rin huffed and scratched the back of Sakura’s ear. She purred against him as Rin fetched her food and plopped her down to eat it. He patted her back affectionately.

“Looks like you made a friend, Sakura,” Rin remarked. “Should I be jealous? You’re usually so solitary.”

Sakura didn’t deign him an answer. She merely licked her chops before digging in again. Rin chuckled, stretching. His hours had changed again, unfortunately. He and Sakura would be eating later than usual. It had been lonely up until he had found Sakura. With his sister and his childhood friend back home and him here in Tokyo, working and taking a semester off to pay for school, he hadn’t really made any friends. But it was okay if he had Sakura. He nudged her with his toes.

“Oi, don’t make such a mess on the floor, Sakura. It’s me who has to clean it up,” He reprimanded.

Sakura’s only answer was to wash her face instead.

-

Rin dragged himself in, exhausted and achy all over, having stood up on his feet too long, and having had to smile at shitty people for the better part of the day too much. All he wanted was a sandwich and to go straight into bed. He rubbed at his eye and heard muffled wailing. Rin glanced up to see someone hurrying up the stairs to the previously unoccupied apartment. He had heard the landlady gossiping that she’d found a new tenant, but truthfully, Rin had been working overtime all week and couldn’t bring himself to care much.

He heard what sounded like a body thudding to the floor, probably a bad trip from the creaky sitar at the top of the staircase that the landlady always forgot to fix and everyone eventually learned to just hop over. Rin shook his head and shouldered his way into his apartment, fully ready to face plant into his bed.

He didn’t notice the black cat racing up the stairs after the new tenant.

-

It seemed that whenever Rin was looking for Sakura in her usual haunts outside, that black cat was there, too. Sakura for the most part let the cat in her vicinity but hissed when he dared to overstep his boundaries. He was allowed to be in her presence but to share her breathing space was off-limits. Rin had to laugh when he saw it. There was Sakura, his demure, wonderful Sakura, lounging on the small back veranda his apartment had, and the black cat exiled to a far, uncomfortable corner. Sometimes it called to Sakura, and she might glance over, but other times she simply ignored him.

Rin shot the cat a childish, triumphant look. He was playing a losing game, if Rin could say so himself.

Rin snorted in finality, content that he could leave Sakura to her own devices so that he could look over the course selection for his next semester in university. He’d missed out taking this semester off, but he was pretty good with maths, so he had little to worry about if he went ahead to the next level. It was the required literature that was getting him down.

Rin sighed and set in to devout his time to trying to calculate a good time table for classes and work hours before he’d start dinner and call Sakura in.

-

Sakura wasn’t looking so good. She wasn’t as lively as she usually was. She was as lazy as they came, but she was moreso. Even worse, it seemed she was keeping her food down. He had already cleaned up the remains of that mornings food up when he saw her wretching out in the yard a litle too close to the landlady’s garden. He had worried that maybe she’d eaten something horrible when he wasn’t looking. But for the most part, she seemed fine despite it. She was a bit more irritable than usual, though. Rin didn’t dare get on her bad side for too long while she was in a mood.

The black cat that had been so into Sakura was suspiciously missing lately. Perhaps he had sensed the changed mood in her and had wisely taken to annoying some other cats. He finally found his answer when he saw the black cat’s ears perk up from his upstairs neighbor’s wailing, something muffled Rin couldn’t make out but could understand as the universal sound of university student suffering. The cat hopped up the steps towards them. That probably explained the cat’s sudden appearance – he was the new tenant’s cat. Rin dismissed it in the face of Sakura’s strange behavior.

Two weeks later, she was a bit more obliging. At least she was back to sleeping in Rin’s lap now and then. Rin stroked her sides, happy that she was at least keeping her food down better now. She had gained a good deal of weight, actually. Rin was relieved. He scratched under her chin before returning an affection rub at her side. He brushed at her underbelly and froze.

Something firm and protruding was there. He shifted her, ignoring the indignant _mrow_ she gave. Rin’s brows nearly hit his hairline. He knew she had nipples, but he never remember them so – obvious. Sakura swatted at his hand and settled directly on it in retribution.

“What’s going on with you, huh?” Rin muttered. “You’re so weird, lately.”

Sakura only flickered her tail.

-

A couple weeks later, Rin finally figured out what was wrong with Sakura. She had become so particuarly affectionate lately that there was no way Rin wasn’t going to notice how much her body was changing. There was no mistaking the “sudden weight” she’d put on now. But why not be sure? A quick trip to the vet had confirmed his suspicions – pregnant. Her nipples had become that much more apparent and there was no mistaking just what that growing belly on Sakura was signifying.

Rin stared at his cat in horror, all lines coming to intersect in his mind at breakneck speed. The new cat, Sakura’ strange behavior, Sakura _pregnant._ Rin clenched his fist, teeth grinding viciously as his eyes flew up to where his supposed new neighbor was bumbling around. Rin strained his ears, hearing a familiar throaty meow and knew he needed to start breaking necks. He was going to strangle both man and cat _make_ them pay for corrupting Sakura’s virtue the way they had. Hadn’t the man known better than to let that damn cat out wandering like he had?? Hadn’t he known there were sweet girls like Sakura minding her own business before this damn Tom came and had too much fun with her? Rin was furious. He gently cradled Sakura to him and stormed out the door. He took the stairs two at a time, completely flying past the top, rickety step and stomping his way to the new neighbor’s door.

The name on the door read Tachibana. Rin’s teeth ground harder. Finally, a name to a culprit. Rin shifted Sakura who mewled lightly as Rin pounded a fist against the door.

“Tachibana!” Rin seethed. “Tachibana, you come out here! I have a bone to pick with you!”

Tachibana’s startled squeal met him on the other end of the door. He seemed to trip over something, one of which must have been his cat, as he bounded for the door. Rin tapped his foot impatiently. He bared his teeth and clenched his fist at his side, fully ready to give Tachibana a piece of his mind. Tachibana fiddled with the door a little too long for Rin’s liking as he angrily egged him to open it already. The door flew open and all Rin could see was the wide expanse of a chest.

The wide expanse of a very _well-toned_ chest. Rin had to crane his neck just to meet Tachibana’s eyes, traveling up a nice, thick neck, to a strong jaw, and dopey green eyes under a mop of sleep-tousled brown hair. All color fled Rin’s face as he blinked up at Tachibana and only had one thought _‘Shit, he’s hot’_.

“You must be Matsuoka from down below,” Tachibana said, sheepishly. “I’ve been meaning to greet you and the others, but I’ve been so swamped with schoolwork you see.”

“I see,” Rin mumbled, stupidly. He could only blink.

“M-My exams are soon, and science isn’t actually my forte. I’ve been skyping with a friend and, wow, I haven’t really been sleeping, and uhm, I kind of burned my dinner the other day -”

It wasn’t until the black cat came pushing his head out the door to meow at Sakura that Rin remembered why he had come. He looked down at the cat and then at Sakura, belly filled with little ones, and became pissed all over again. Rin’s eyes flew up to Tachibana’s again, effectively cutting him mid-sentence as he nearly stumbled back. Rin viciously pointed at his cat.

“Your cat,” Rin started, peeved. “Got mine pregnant. And I’m going to need _the two _of you to take responsibility!”

Tachibana’s jaw dropped, eyes flying to Sakura, finally noticing her. His face went white and then a hot flash of color rose to his cheeks. He looked down at his cat and nearly bit his tongue calling at it.

“Fluffy Bottom! What have you done!” He cried.

“Fluffy Bottom?” Rin repeated in a mutter to himself.

Tachibana shooed his cat into the house, calling “bad cat, bad cat” after him as the cat only mewled unhappily at Tachibana’s name calling and went to hide in a make shift box-house somewhere inside. Sakura struggled in Rin’s arms, wanting to enter too. Rin kept his firm hold. Tachibana turned back to him, looking fifty shades of ashamed.

“I’m so sorry,” He said, mouth dry. “I really am. I didn’t think he would have done that! I – I should have, though. I’m, uhm, studying to be a vet.”

It was Rin’s jaw that dropped now. But nothing could come out. Tachibana cut in before Rin could think up something a little too mean to say that he wasn’t too sure wouldn’t morph into some stupid remark on hot good-looking Tachibana was the way his thoughts were crashing together.

“Since its my fault for not watching him, I’ll definitely assist in your cat’s time of need,” Tachibana offered. “I’ll babysit and watch her diet and I’ll definitely assist in the birthing! A-And if you need help finding the little ones homes, I’ll do that, too!”

He looked so genuinely remorseful that all the fight bled straight out of Rin. His shoulders sagged. He sighed and figured he’d pet Sakura instead. He glanced up at Tachibana through his bangs, watching him biting his lip in a damn cute way, flush still in place, and such shame that Rin had to take pity on him.

“Fine,” Rin said. “I accept your offers.”

The smile Tachibana gave him was just as worse as his pouting. Rin had never felt so caught off-guard and victimized in all his life. There was no way someone could be so utterly attractive.

-

Tachibana’s given name was Makoto, and he had joked that he and Rin could make quite the duo with their girly names. Rin’s only response was a childhood habit of “I’m definitely a man, thank you!” before he could stop himself. Makoto had burst out laughing right away. It was a sound that made Rin’s body heat up in all the right ways. More often than not, he was now rubbing his hands on his jeans to get rid of the sweatiness. Whether he was smiling or laughing or just sitting there, Rin was caught with this terrible block in his throat and thump in his heart.

The more time that passed until Sakura’s due date, the more Rin was spending time with Makoto, whether intentional or not. It had started with Rin leaving Sakura at Makoto’s, since when Rin was home, Makoto was not, and vice versa. (He took special pleasure in the way Sakura was so intolerant of Fluffy Bottom now). It started with Makoto filling Rin in on Sakura’s daily activities and her antics. The way he spoke so fondly of her was what struck Rin first. At some point Makoto was even sending Rin pictures of Sakura to get him through his long shifts at wok.

It extended to them trading dinner (or moreso Rin because Makoto couldn’t cook for shit). Then to them sharing dinner together in the apartment Sakura was currently laid up in for the day. They sat opposite each other at whoever’s table, close enough that their feet brushed under it, laughing around mouthfuls of food.

Not too long after The Incident, Fluffy Bottom had been neutered. As if sensing Rin’s hand in it, Fluffy Bottom never stayed in the same room as Rin much less gave him a lick of attention. Rin almost felt a little bad. After all, if it hadn’t been for the cat, he wouldn’t have met Makoto.

It only became worse when Rin offered to tutor Makoto in math the more he lamented to Rin how he was worrying over his coming exams. They had worked side by side, the bulk of Makoto’s arms encased in an unfortunate baggy shirt that still didn’t do much to hide the bicep that laid underneath. Every so often their arms or hands brushed and Rin had to will himself to stay calm. Even in those baggy sweats of his, Rin could see he had thighs that made his mouth water. Rin’s eye caught it all. The killing blow was when Makoto had turned to him, thick-rimmed glasses seated on the bridge of his nose and a determined look in his eyes. Rin just wanted to die.

Makoto was a forth-coming student anyway; eager to learn, eager to please, and quick on the draw. He repeated the instructions quietly to himself in confirmation before carrying it out with precision. He only hiccuped once or twice but otherwise made Rin proud.

“You catch on quick,” Rin praised, only just holding off the urge to pat him on the arm.

Makoto grinned, folding those god-forsaken glasses up to place in his breast pocket. He fixed Rin with a warm look as a tiny dimple appeared at the corner of his cheek.

“That’s because I’ve had a really good teacher,” Makoto said.

Rin flushed and coughed into his fist. “I’m an all right teacher. It helps that you pay attention so well.”

“No, I mean it Rin. If you ever wanted to be a teacher, you could. You really have a way of making people pay attention to you, and explaining things. You’re really amazing.”

Rin was no stranger to compliments but coming from Makoto, it made him want to crawl away and melt into a puddle. Rin rubbed at his nose and muttered under his breath.

You’re the amazing one, aren’t you? Being a vet’s not an easy route, right? That’s how I see it anyway,” Rin admitted.

Makoto laughed, a gentle sound that make Rin’s chest warm. Rin dared a look at Makoto. Makoto hid nothing in his expression.

“Well, if its coming from you, I guess I can accept defeat this time,” Makoto said.

-

Sakura was becoming increasingly irritable and restless. She wouldn’t sit still for any amount of time. Rin could hear her padding around the apartment, meowing at nothing and scratching at things here and there. Sometimes she would roost in his closet or make a nest out of a jacket he left hanging on the couch, too tired from work to hang it up. When Rin had told Makoto, he had hummed at first and told him it was time to start preparing a nest for Sakura to set up in for her kittens.

Some shredded paper and old sheets were bundled into a cozy little box courtesy of Makoto in a quiet corner of the apartment not a day later. Sakura had seemed happy enough with the development and spent her days there, arranging and rearranging it as she set up camp.

“She’ll be due any day now, I think,” Makoto said. “We just have to be ready. It should go okay. She has you and you have me.”

Rin didn’t want to tell him that he wished he he had meant it in a different way. A more romantic way. But he didn’t dare voice his opinion. Rin nodded instead.

“Yeah. I’m just nervous for her,” Rin said. “First litter. Hopefully, her _last_ litter, too.”

Makoto laughed lightly; “We know it is for Fluffy Bottom.”

Rin elbowed Makoto in the side then. “I have to ask. Why is he named Fluffy Bottom anyway?”

Makoto blushed, a hand coming to the back of his neck as Rin’s smile grew teasing. Makoto swatted at him, hoping to stave off Rin’s incoming teasing. Rin poked at him, trying to force out the answer. He’d recently come to learn all of Makoto’s ticklish points. Makoto weakly batted at Rin’s hands.

“My little sister accidentally got gum in his hair the first few days I had him when I was still living at home. I shaved most of him except the back part. He’s really fluffy so, ah,” Makoto said, finishing awkwardly.

Rin erupted in a fit of laughted, hanging onto Makoto’s forearm for dear life as tears gathered in his eyes. He shook his head, his forehead brushing against Makoto’s abdomen. He sobered enough to blink up at Makoto.

“You have to be the silliest person I’ve ever met, honestly,” Rin said, between giggles.

Makoto’s hand hovered before falling back away from Rin. If he didn’t know better he might have imagined Makoto was going to touch his cheek. Rin willed away the thought. Makoto shrugged instead.

“It seemed kind of cute at the time,” He admitted.

Rin beamed, straightening himself. “Well. It’s not all that’s shaved now, huh?”

“Rin!” Makoto said, pushing him lightly. Rin only laughed harder.

-

Sakura’s labor drove Rin on edge. She was so restless and upset that it extended to Rin, too. She’d cry out every so often, wanting to get up and pace but ultimately too fed up to. She licked at herself and cried again. Rin hushed her kindly.

“It’ll be okay, girl,” He cooed. “It’ll be okay. I’m here and Makoto is here.”

Makoto nodded next to him, kneeling next to Rin as he exhaled loudly. He had a pair of gloves in his pocket and some towels and what looked like a dropper that Makoto said was to help clear their airways. Hours seemed to pass, and they probably had before Sakura’s first yowl jolted Rin.

Rin craned his neck as Makoto got up and walked around him, hovering by Sakura. The first head pushed its way out and Rin held his breath. Makoto murmured soothingly to Sakura, gently taking the first little one as it successfully passed through, toweling it off gently but efficiently. It cried out, rousing Sakura. Makoto did a quick look over before he gently placed the baby down for Sakura to chew at the umbilical cord and begin licking its little face all over. The baby cried again.

Rin sniffled, tears collecting in his eyes as he watched the tiny thing’s little limbs twitch as Sakura ran her rough tongue on the top of its head. The second baby was already coming and Rin was very much on his way to wailing. Makoto smiled kindly but didn’t comment. Two more babies later and Makoto had told Rin reach into his breast pocket to take the handkerchief he had stored there especially for Rin.

Rin would have felt moved if he wasn’t so busy cooing over Sakura. A fifth baby was making its way out before anything could said and done. Makoto was efficient as he’d been before, rousing the little one who had taken a bit too long to cry with a few gentle swipes of his fingers. It wailed before Sakura was reaching to take it from Makoto. A sixth and final kitten came a few minutes later, the runt, much smaller than her siblings, but probably the loudest of the bunch.

Rin sobbed around a smile, reaching out to stroke Sakura’s head as he congratulated her. Makoto worked in the back, disposing of the afterbirth and tidying up the nest as Rin cooed over the babies. When he had disposed of his gloves and sanitized his hands he came to sit flush against Rin’s side. They sat with their knees to their chests in front of Sakura’s box, watching the mother and kittens finally able to dose. Sakura winked one eye before finally lying down for a victory doze.

“I guess we’re grandparents now, Rin,” Makoto murmured. “Congratulations.”

Rin smiled, looking down at where their hands could be touching if one of them shifted a bit. He looked back up at Makoto, beaming smile still on his face.

“Congrats to you, too. Besides Sakura, you did some hard work, too,” Rin said.

Makoto laughed, a little self-deprecating. “Well, if not for my cat we wouldn’t be here, would we?”

Rin dared to close the gap. Makoto didn’t pull back, only curled his fingers a little more. It gave Rin a trill of courage as he tilted his head to regard Makoto some more. Makoto looked almost teasing as he looked back at him.

“We wouldn’t,” Rin admitted. “I guess I’ll have to thank the little brat.”

“Careful, Rin,” Makoto joked. “He’s still my baby.”

“And me?” Rin said, meaning to play it off as a joke. Makoto’s brow shot up, though, a light flush on his cheeks. But he didn’t reply right away. Rin was about to take it back when Makoto began to speak again.

“My boyfriend, if I could be so lucky,” Makoto said.

A fresh batch of tears were making its way to Rin’s eyes. He tackled Makoto to the floor in a hug that startled Sakura before she was sleeping again. Rin kissed all over Makoto’s face, laughing around each kiss and enjoying the slow, happy smile rising on Makoto’s face.

“It’s me that’s lucky,” Rin said. “But yes. Yes, yes, yes, yes!”

Makoto curled his hand around the back of Rin’s head and pulled him down for a proper kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/143099283593/your-cat-is-a-menace


	7. MakoHaru: Pool Toys

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Makoto. Kiss it.” 
> 
> Makoto hadn’t even known what to do.

Makoto was used to Haru’s antics by now, dulled in parts by having been with him for so many years. Even with that, however, Haru still exasperated him to a point where weirdness outside of Haru was probably absolutely less than shocking. Though Nagisa could still change his mind when he wanted to.

But this, maybe this took the cake.

“Makoto,” Haru said. “Kiss it.”

Makoto hadn’t even known what to do. Haru stood before him, still wet with water from head to toe. Drops ran down his bangs dripping to the bridge of his nose and splashing to the floor between them. He was in his usual jammers, his “house” jammers, if he was being particular, still drenched from his soak. Haru looked at him from beneath his wet hair, face seemingly blank and stoic, though the glint of mischief was there in his eyes. Regardless, he twisted his mouth into a frown, more of a pout really, and kept his eyes locked on Makoto’s face so he couldn’t look away.

“Makoto,” He insisted again. “_Kiss _it.”

Makoto sighed. He bent down, eyes screwed shut as went past Haru’s waist and towards the head of the dolphin floaty hanging low on Haru’s hips. He pecked the head of it, its bright, blue starry eyes caving it towards each other as the head bent under Makoto’s lips. He lingered only for a few seconds, feeling Haru’s slim fingers brushing at the hair of his nape and circling patterns with his thumb before he pulled back. Makoto stood up straight again, cheeks fully pink as he regarded Haru. His hand instinctively came up to rub at the back of his neck, still tingling from the light touches. 

“Th-There, better?” Makoto said, softly. 

Haru nodded, shifting it around on his hips before he completely stepped out of it and kicked it away. He took a hold of Makoto’s wrist as he licked his lips. He watched Makoto’s eyes flicked down, watching him. When he finally tore his gaze away, Makoto could only glance at him from underneath his bangs. The twinkle was back in his eyes. 

“That was good. But I have something else you can kiss now, too,” Haru said, and drew Makoto down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/120385973178/makoto-kiss-it-makoto-hadnt-even-known-what


	8. SouRin: Baby Darlings

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Inspired by hissorihaka's baby darling au! Please check them out on tumblr and twitter <3

Sousuke was rolling a tennis ball between his hands on the floor, tail wagging in a slow, contented way when Kisumi had told Sousuke he would have to start preschool soon. Sousuke had frowned and told him very firmly, “No!”. But apparently it wasn’t up for debate. Kisumi had pouted, coming to sit down with Sousuke on the floor. He laid a gentle hand to Sousuke’s head, his black ears flattening on instinct as Kisumi petted him.

“It won’t be so bad, Sousuke,” Kisumi said. “You’ll get to learn a lot of new things and meet lots of new friends. You even have nap time. You love nap time!”

“I can do that here,” Sousuke said, cheeks puffing. “I don’t need anyone but Kisu.”

Kisumi made a sound like a dying whale in his throat. He pulled Sousuke against him, ignoring his peevish little cries that Kisumi was “crushing him” and whined, rocking the little boy back and forth.

“Souuusuke,” Kisumi cried. “I want that more than anything. I wish I could take you to work with me.”

Sousuke peeked up through Kisumi’s arm. “Then bring me.”

“No critters allowed,” Kisumi said sadly. “But you’re going to love preschool trust me. I’ll pack you tonkatsu and everything, I promise.”

Sousuke pouted, clearly put out. But his tail gave a faint wag as his eyes dart to and from Kisumi with interest. “…If there is tonkatsu. Maybe.”

It was as close to a yes as Kisumi would get for now and that was okay. He’d already picked up Sousuke’s school uniform a few days ago. It would be worth the brief pre and post bath scuffle to get Sousuke into it when the time came.

-

“I changed my mind! I want to go back home!” Sousuke cried, wiggling incessantly from under Kisumi’s arm. “I will share tonkatsu with Kisu if we go back home right now.”

“You know we can’t do that, Sou. You’re wearing your uniform and everything,” Kisumi reasoned. He readjusted his grip on the little guy’s torso and swung Sousuke’s piggy lunch box in his other hand. “Don’t you want to me Rei-sensei? He’s very nice!”

“No!” Sousuke said, resolute. “There’s nothing there for me. Piggy and chewy are at home. I can’t tell Kisu welcome home if I’m not home!”

“It’ll be better this way, Sousuke. We’ll go home together. Won’t that be cool? Walking home together? We can go past Ms. Amakata’s house like you like to. She always tells you what a nice boy you are.”

Sousuke hesitated, a bit put out with Kisumi’s logic. But then Kisumi looked down and Sousuke’s frown was back in place. He shook his head, stubborn as ever.

“No! Not even for head pats!”

“Well it’s too late for that young man,” Kisumi said.

He kicked the white picket gate close with the heel of his foot as he passed through. He took a few more steps before placing Sousuke on his feet and handing him his lunch box. Sousuke looked up at him, brows drawn down looking thoroughly put out. Kisumi held out his hand and Sousuke took it, unhappy as he was.

They walked together inside, Sousuke’s frown getting deeper and deeper as they approached the teacher. Kisumi introduced the two of them, but Sousuke’s scowl was the only thing that greeted him.

“I’m really sorry, he’s honestly much nicer than this,” Kisumi hastily added. “Right, Sou?”

The teacher - Rei-sensei - laughed, telling him that he wasn’t unused to it. He knelt down to Sousuke’s level and held out a hand to him. Sousuke narrowed his eyes and didn’t take it. Rei-sensei didn’t seem to care.

“Hello, Sousuke,” Rei-sensei said, finger pushing his glasses up his nose. “I hear you are upset to be here. I’m sure I can fix that. We will have many fun, educational things to do this year.”

When it was clear Sousuke wouldn’t answer, Rei stood back up again and addressed Kisumi. Sousuke wriggled his hand out of Kisumi’s grasp but pressed his face into his guardian’s pant leg, latching on.

Something tugged at his tail and Sousuke moved it without thinking. It tugged again, and then again. Every time Sousuke tried to swat it away, the tugging got more incessant. Sousuke reluctantly looked away from Kisumi to glance behind him. Big, red eyes stared back at him, and a thumb pressed inside a little mouth with the tip of a sharp tooth poking out. Sousuke turned a little more. It was a critter only a little smaller than him - a cat, it seemed. He looked at Sousuke curiously.

“I like your tail,” The other boy said. “Ish fluffy.”

Sousuke moved his tail, watching the other kid’s eyes widen and a smile go around his thumb. He reached out to tug on it again. Sousuke hid a smile against Kisumi’s leg.

“I’m Rin,” The other boy said. He held out his hand for Sousuke to take. “Come play with me.”

“I’m Sousuke,” Sousuke said. He looked at Rin’s hand, still decidedly latched onto Kisumi but feeling as though he really wanted to hold Rin’s hand.

“Sou!” Rin repeated. “Let’s be friends.”

Sousuke took Rin’s hand. One, two, three fingers pulled off of Kisumi’s pant leg. With a pull from Rin, he had completely let go. He looked over his shoulder a minute, to see Kisumi grinning at him, eyes encouraging and warm. He wiggled his fingers at Sousuke in goodbye.Sousuke looked back to Rin and followed him where two others also were, and thought that preschool might be okay after all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/175117277248/hey-again-sousuke-rin-its-been-a-while-but


	9. SouRin: Reunion

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It’s been a while, but Rin’s always happy to see Sousuke.

“Rin, _Riiiin_.” Rin groaned burrowing his face deeper into the haven of his arms. If he burrowed deep enough, he might be able to block him out. “Oi, RinRin.”

A poke jolted Rin sideways. He grumbled, trying to reach blindly for his sheets but feeling none. They must have been ripped away from him long before. His feet were cold. A common occurence lately. Even with socks, Rin hated how cold they felt.

Reluctantly, Rin pried his eyes open.

He blinked up at the jackass who’d woken him up, mouth pulling down in a frown. A dopey, easy grin greeted him, chin propped up on a palm. Even in his half-sleepy haze Rin would know that lovably insufferable expression. No amount of distance could make him forget it.

“Sousuke,” Rin dully said. “Oi, let a guy sleep.”

Sousuke shook his head. He rested his elbows on his thighs, hands hanging between where his legs were parted in a squat. Sousuke huffed a laugh through his nose.

“You really going to just lie there? I haven’t seen you in a while and you’re just going to sleep?”

Rin laid his cheek against his arm, blinking slowly. That was right, wasn’t it? How long had it been since he’d seen Sousuke? A good while at least. Not since Sousuke’s birthday, probably.

In the corner, a clock was ticking away. It was midday, by the looks of it; light spilling through the thin curtains pulled shut at his back. He must have conked out in Sousuke’s old room at his apartment. It was pretty bare now. Since he’d moved out. It wasn’t a secret he hadn’t been happy when Sousuke had decided to move out, but his friend was pursuing his own little dream. He already had the photo Sousuke had taken at his parents’ restaurant, the two of them and Momo and Ai at Sousuke’s last medley, hung up on the wall there. _“So everyone knows where Matsuoka Rin really came from,” He had said, smirking._

Rin sat up with a groan. His back was killing him. Must have slept bad, he mused, worked out a little too hard and slept like the dead not long after. Sousuke shot him a look that said he was suspecting as much. He didn’t say anything though, only grinned a little more.

“Hey, it’s been a while. Keepin’ on without me there to wake you up?” Sousuke teased.

Rin snorted. “You seem to have it backwards, asshole. It was me that had to wake you up.” Rin sat back on his hands, raking his eye over his friend’s face. He clicked his tongue.

A guy goes away for a few short years to compete on the international stage, bust his ass, mind, and the guy sitting at his parents’ restaurant cooking tonkatsu looked like he’d never left his first year of college. Some days Rin could swear there were crow’s feet creeping up on the corners of his eyes. Smile lines forming from where he’d grinned too big, too hard; not that he regretted a single one of those. An innumerable amount of those had come from the guy sitting right across from him.

“Nothing about you has changed, how unfair is that? All this time i haven’t seen you and you’re still the same,” Rin complained.

“What’s a little age? You look fine. You always did. Just put on a sheet mask or whatever,” Sousuke quipped back.

“Bah says the one who always had good skin. I swear, in none of your middle school pictures your mom showed me did you even get acne.”

Sousuke shrugged, a sly look across his face. “Sucks to suck, huh?”

Rin flicked his foot forward, nudging at the side of Sousuke’s thigh where he could reach. Sousuke laughed; a sound that made Rin blink wide awake, and grin brightly. Sousuke hummed, glancing around the room. Aside from some photos, a stray shirt, and his weights or so, most of his stuff was gone. What he couldn’t take with him to his parents house, he inevitably left behind.

“You really cleaned this place up,” Sousuke commented. He gave a low whistle.“Didn’t know this place even had a floor.”

“No thanks to you,” Rin joked. He briefly recalled the three of them sitting around together, pilling things into boxes, closing them with tape. Sometimes Makoto’s hands would shake. “Makoto and Haru helped me do it.”

“Mm. Nanase didn’t mess with my stuff did he?” Sousuke said, scowling. His serious expression broke a couple seconds right after he said so, eyes halved at his own joke. Rin rolled his eyes.

“Naw,” Rin replied. He paused, furrowing his brow. “He was careful. He doesn’t wanna say it, but he misses you, too.”

“Don’t tell him but I miss them, too.” Sousuke said. His eyes lingered on the photo of him and Haru, the two of them wearing matching aprons in a cooking competition they’d tag-teamed in and won. Rin and Gou had complained about them not smiling for the photo, but that was really only to piss the two Matsuoka siblings off. Sousuke crooked a grin. “Don’t get me wrong, I love my parents. But they’re so embarrassing.”

In the distance, an ambulance wailed by. Rin glanced over his shoulder, brows furrowing. Lightly, Sousuke touched his knee, eyes a little sad when he turned back to him.

“They doing okay?” Rin murmured.

Part of the reason Sousuke had moved back was his parents. As their only child, he didn’t feel right leaving them alone out there in Sano. Having given up on swimming, Sousuke had said that taking over the restaurant wasn’t a bad backup plan to him. If the Samezuka Cultural Fest had been any indication, he cooked pretty well. Even if his mom liked to tease him he still had a long way to go to earn Grandpa’s Apron.

He would take college classes there, get his degree. Maybe even expand their little place in the future so his parents could live even easier. He expected Rin to pop in and give the place all the traction it needed when he scored big in the Olympics.

_“Don’t forget us little people, Rin,” Sousuke had said, feigning fawning over him, nearly crushing him under his weight. He’d laughed as Rin struggled to push back at him._

_“If you’re little I’d hate to see what’s big,” Rin had joked back._

“Old age, you know. They’re fine. They talk about you a lot, want to see you but know you’re busy.”

“Haven’t seen my mom lately either. She and Dad -” Rin paused. “She and _Gou_ went on a trip recently. Didn’t even invite me, can you believe it? I love onsens!”

Sousuke tipped his head back and laughed. “Probably thought you’d use all the shampoos and stuff before they could. Ow!” Sousuke rubbed at his shin, pouting at Rin’s vicious grin. “You little shit.”

“That’s what you get,” Rin playfully sneered.

A beat passed before Rin was really looking at Sousuke; at his same dark, short hair, and his clear blue eyes. At the way his lids drooped, a perpetual Sleeping Beauty at the oncoming mercy of a spindle’s needle; The tiny scar at his eyebrow. Sousuke took both of his hands in his, rubbing a thumb over the back of his hand. An overwhelming warmth spread through Rin, burning away the encroaching coldness he didn’t realize was spreading up from his ankles.

Tomorrow Rin had practice. He wasn’t sure what Sousuke was doing here popping in so suddenly, but then the guy never really did have a good sense of time. He lamented the hours that he’d be away unable to catch up more with his friend. They could still text during Rin’s breaks, anyway. If Sousuke even bothered to be awake, that is. A million more questions came to mind, too. If he was working on his shoulder, if he was happy as he said back home, how is classes were.

The last time Sousuke had visited, he’d had to rush to the train. Rin had worried he’d get lost, but Sousuke had waved his phone with Google Maps bright on the screen. The promise that he’d definitely call once he’d gotten on.

Rin pulled his brows down. “You didn’t call me.”

“Huh?”

“The last time you were here, you said you’d call when you got on the train, you butthead. I waited all that time and you didn’t call.” Rin huffed. “Honestly.”

Sousuke grinned, a touch of seasalt and summer breeze wedged into the corners of his smile. He ducked his head, sheepish.

“I wanted to,” Sousuke admitted. “You know I would never not message you. Not if I couldn’t.”

“So why didn’t you?” Rin said, voice a little too hard and whiny. A tang of bitterness settled on Rin’s tongue, set his teeth on edge until it felt like it was pulling at the backs of his eyes. Always a crybaby, he petulantly said to himself. One forgotten phone call and he was ready to break out the waterworks.

Rin laced their fingers together.

Sousuke shrugged. It - didn’t piss Rin off nearly as much as he thought it would. Coldness warred with the heat Sousuke bled into him, settling in his stomach like calm waters.Tears clumped against his lower lashes, slowly then all at once, like everything else that surrounded his feelings for Sousuke. He blearily watched it fall into the tiny space where their fingers intertwined. Rin squeezed Sousuke’s hand. He swallowed.

“How long are you staying this time?” Rin asked instead.

“Not too long. You still got stuff to do. You know I hate keeping you from it,” Sousuke told him.

Rin pressed his forehead against Sousuke’s right shoulder; uncaring of how he drenched it, or the soft, noncommittal “oi” it earned him in return. He wiped his cheek against his friend’s shoulder, curling closer, for even a second more of that warmth.

“I just wanted to check in on you,” Sousuke said. “You make me really proud. I’m proud of you, Rin. We’ll have more time to catch up another time.”

Behind them, the curtains shuddered, light flickering as clouds hovered past. Despite his words, Rin held tight to Sousuke’s hand.

“I told you I was waiting for you, but this time, keeping waiting for me. We’ll be together eventually, I promise.”

Sousuke laughed, knocking their foreheads together and pulling Rin down back into the softness of his bed. Reaching for the sheets bunched somewhere Rin couldn’t see, Sousuke pulled them over the both of them, whispering something Rin couldn’t hear before Rin let his eyes slide shut.

When Rin woke again, it was to clear blue eyes and a thin little hand wrapped around his. A young girl was hovering over him. She looked down from where she was conversing with someone. An exhale rocked through her body.

“Hey, Grandpa, are you okay?” The girl said. “You just fell like that on the sidewalk. The ambulance just got here, don’t worry.”

The paramedics carefully transferred him to the gurney, the young girl still firmly holding onto his hand as they talked amongst themselves and began lifting him up into the back of the van. 

Rin grinned despite himself, squeezing her hand, even as she had to let her grip fall away. The few remaining snaggles of teeth in his jaw peeking out, making the girl smile back. “Takes more than that to put me down,” Rin joked. “Still got some more to do.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/175117277248/hey-again-sousuke-rin-its-been-a-while-but


	10. SouHaru: Childhood Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SOUHARU WEEK 2015 - DAY 1 -FIRSTS & CHILDHOOD  
Sousuke’s first friend is a “fish-person” named Haruka. Mermaid AU.

Sousuke was eight when he’d met Haruka. He had gone out to the beach on his own for the day. His mother had warned him not to go out too far, especially since he’d be alone, and to come back before the sun set. He didn’t live far from the beach anyway, which was probably what made his mother so okay with it. Sousuke had agreed and been out the door before she could tell him to wait for a lunch she’d pack for him.

Sousuke had found a secluded spot on the beach, a bit hard to reach since you had to walk along some rocks to get to a little strip that was shielded by big cliffs. Sousuke had set out early, hoping to avoid meeting anyone who would follow him and ruin his spot. He’d thought instantly of the loudmouth boy with the girly name who was so adamant about him being on the swim team with him. He had his own charm, though, Sousuke supposed. Maybe if they became friends he’d show him. But for now, this was Sousuke’s secret and he intended to keep it that way.

Sousuke balanced himself carefully, hopping on the natural trail of rocks to his strip. He wiggled and then jumped to reach land again, only barely getting his shoe wet as he landed. Sousuke looked back, hearing only the distant sounds of a family getting ready to set up before continuing on his way. Sousuke stopped. A boy was seated on the sand, looking out at the water longingly.

“Hey!” Sousuke said, indignant. “What do you think you’re doing here?”

The boy regarded Sousuke peevishly before answering; “Sitting,” He said.

“Obviously,” Sousuke said, rolling his eyes. “But why _here_? This is my spot.”

“Since when?” the boy said. “No one owns this spot and I didn’t see any names on it.”

“There doesn’t need to be one. No one comes here but me, so it’s mine.”

The boy laid out on the sand, resolute. “I’m not moving,” He said firmly.

“Fine, then! Neither am I,” Sousuke groused. He flopped down a few feet away from him, head pillowed by his bag. Just like that, a ruined day.

They remained in silence for a good while before Sousuke heard the other boy shifting. Sousuke dared a glance at him, watching as the boy sat up. He still looked out at the water like he was expecting some grand answer. Sousuke couldn’t help himself.

“Why are you doing that?” He asked.

“Doing what?” The boy asked curtly. He glared over at Sousuke, blue eyes narrowed. Sousuke dug his fingers into the sand, strangely fascinated by how blue his eyes were, how pretty his face was for a boy. Granted Sousuke didn’t know many people in Sano, but he was sure this boy didn’t live here. He could have moved recently, at least.

“Looking at the ocean _like that_. Like…you want to jump right in and turn into a fish. Do you like water that much?” Sousuke said.

The boy blinked, caught off guard before smiling wryly. “You aren’t…wrong. And, yes, I love the water,” He said.

Sousuke couldn’t stop himself. “What’s your name? I don’t think I’ve seen you in Sano.”

The boy shook his head. “No, I’m…I’m just visiting. I’m Haruka.”

Sousuke wrinkled his nose. “You have a girly name.” Haruka fixed him with an unamused look. “Don’t be like that. It’s not a bad thing. It suits you. I’m Sousuke.”

“Sousuke,” Haruka repeated. He nodded afterwards, “It suits you, too. Do you know how to swim?”

“No,” Sousuke admitted. “But a boy with a girl name like you keeps nagging me to.”

“Then why don’t you?” Haruka said. “You’re missing out on a lot.”

“Oh yeah? Can you swim then?” Sousuke said, feeling indignant. “What’s so great about swimming anyway?”

Haruka looked at him as if he’d grown an extra head. He flew to his feet and pointed out towards the water. “Get up, we’re going swimming. I’m going to teach you.”

For the sake of being a pain, Sousuke shook his head and told him no way. Haruka scowled before grabbing hold of Sousuke’s arm. “Come on. Sousuke! “

Sousuke flopped back, Haru barely moved Sousuke, but it was enough to make Sousuke burst into laughter. Haru dropped Sousuke’s arm instead to go run into the water. When he didn’t hear Haru’s splashing anymore, Sousuke looked up and only to be drenched in a splash of water. Sousuke sputtered.

“Haruka!” Sousuke seethed.

He jumped to his feet in a flash and dove at Haruka. Haruka barely sidestepped him before Sousuke was grabbing him by his arm and they both fell face first into the shallow water, sputtering sand and salt. Haruka sat up on his elbows from underneath Sousuke’s arm and glowered at him. Sousuke couldn’t help the grin on his face. At the base of Haruka’s jaws something blue and small seemed to appear.

“Well,” He said. “What’s so great about swimming?”

Haruka raised a hand as if to push him away before reconsidering it. He stood up and held out a hand towards Sousuke. He motioned with his head farther out in the water. Sousuke took his hand and let himself be led out. The water got deeper the more they walked. Sousuke felt fine when the water reached his hips, but then became fearful when it started to reach his shoulders. He tugged on Haruka’s hand, curious as to why his skin felt so strange suddenly. Haruka stopped and looked back at him questioningly.

“Don’t be afraid,” Haruka said. “I’ve got you.”

He tugged Sousuke along a few more steps but didn’t let go of his hand. In fact, he took Sousuke’s other hand in his as well. Even with the chill of the water Sousuke felt hot all over. The water sloshed around him but he only kept his eyes locked on Haruka’s.

“Remember what I said?” Haruka mumbled. “About not being afraid? Don’t freak out.”

“Yeah? Why what are you going to do?” Sousuke said, uneasy. Haruka smiled small but reassuringly. Haruka tugged him along again, until the water came up to Sousuke’s chin and his hands were gripping Haruka’s too tightly. Something scaly brushed against Sousuke’s legs as Haruka bobbed up and down. Whatever it was was tickling Sousuke around his ankles. Sousuke looked down.

“H-Haruka,” Sousuke stuttered. “Where are your legs?”

Haruka tilted his head. He squeezed Sousuke’s hands. He propelled his tail and swam Sousuke around in a lazy, slow circle. Sousuke couldn’t stop gaping, nearly choking on the water that flooded in. He hadn’t even realized when his legs had lifted off the ground.

“When they get wet they go away,” Haruka said. “I’m half fish.”

Sousuke looked up at him in alarm. “I was only joking about that!”

Haruka huffed, “Well I wasn’t. Are we going to swim or not? I told you I’d teach you, didn’t I?”

Sousuke opened and closed his mouth, unsure how to proceed. The blue things he’d thought he seen were actually scales growing along Haruka’s skin the longer they remained in the water. Sousuke brought a hand up to poke at the scales on Haruka’s neck fascinated by how smooth they were. He looked up at him.

“They’re real. _You’re_ real,” He said.

“Isn’t that I’ve been trying to tell you?” Haruka grumbled. “Are we going to swim or not?”

“Is this is why you love water so much?” Sousuke blurted. “Because you’re a fish?”

“_Half_ fish. And only partly. Water is calming. When you’re one with it, it feels like everything is right.”

“Show me then,” Sousuke said. He kicked choppily, trying to keep afloat though Haruka was doing most of it. His feet brushed along Haruka’s tail every time he tried to keep his body floating. “I want to see what’s so great about swimming and the water.”

Haruka grinned, unbidden.

-

Haruka pulled Sousuke close enough that he could finally feel his feet hit the sand as he stood, the water only coming just under his shoulders. Sousuke felt a bit at a loss when he let go of his hand. Haruka swam lazy circles around him.

“Well?” Haruka said, expectant.

Sousuke rubbed at his nose. “It wasn’t bad. It was actually fun. I might actually join the swim club now,” Sousuke admitted. “I – thanks. Will you be here again tomorrow? To, uh, swim more?”

Haruka ducked down a bit, failing to hide a smile in the water as Sousuke slowly grinned at him. “I’ll be here.”

When Sousuke turned to head to the beach Haruka tugged on his wrist, watching the look of confusion flash across Sousuke’s face. He pushed a shiny blue scale into Sousuke’s hand and swam back a little ways away.

“Keep it,” Haruka said. “It’s a gift. Our kind only gives it to people we feel are our friends. Come back tomorrow to swim more.”

Sousuke curled the scale in his fist, nodding resolutely. “I will.” Sousuke was hesitant, but he headed to the beach. He shrugged on his back and watched as Haruka waved slightly before diving down and disappearing in the water. Sousuke waited a few more seconds before resuming back along the path of the rocks and towards the main beach. He peeked at the scale before shoving it into his bag. He’d back tomorrow, and the next day, and every day after that until he could finally swim easily alongside Haruka in the ocean.

-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/134543728388/souharu-week-2015-day-1-firsts-childhood
> 
> AN: Sorry its late, I have finals next week and things are kind of bad for me right now, too. But I really wanted to write to get my mind off of things. I have an essay to do but I couldn’t focus until I at least wrote one day for SouHaru week. Mermaid AUs are honestly my favorite, so don’t even be surprised. The idea of childhood sweethearts/mermaid!Haru&Sousuke really appealed to me.


	11. SouHaru Week2015 - Days 2 & 3: Numbers/Space & AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Continuation of the mer-haru & kid ssk fic.
> 
> He woulnd’t stand on the world stage with Rin, but he’d be here, swimming like he’d truly enjoyed and wanted with Haruka.

Sousuke pulled his hoodie down and took a deep breath of the night air. The wind wasn’t as cool as Sousuke would have liked considering how hot the day had been but it was nothing unpleasant. Even his shoulder didn’t ache. Out here, he could barely hear any cars or people, he could stand out on this little slab of earth doused in water and watch the sky reflected on its surface. When the weather was good, he could pretend that he was standing on a bed of stars. He supposed that line of thinking he’d adopted from Rin over the years, but it was one he welcomed. 

The week had been terrible, and Sousuke had felt so terribly drained by the time the weekend finally rolled around. He had turned down Rin and Kisumi’s offers for a night in with them and instead grabbed his hoodie, keys, phone, and walked straight to the beach, one of the few places he could get to without any issue. He was slow and deliberate getting here, sucking in the peace he could finally have. He fingered the charm he’d kept over the years in his pocket. He’d told his mother it was a lucky mermaid scale his friend had given him, but over the years the thought had gotten silly, no matter how much Sousuke still believed it in the back of his mind. The only consolation was Rin sheepishly telling him he believed him. Sousuke took it out of his pocket and let the ring dangle on his finger. He dropped his hand and let it dangle from his fist.

Sousuke remorsed when he bored a hole into it, but told himself it was for the best if he could carry that silvery blue scale better with him on the keyring. The scales around the ring itself had dulled, but the rest remained vibrant.

Maybe the fact that it wasn’t completely solid was the reason his luck had been so shitty, he had mused once. He knew better, though, luck didn’t save you completely from bad decisions. He had made as much peace with a career ending injury, Rin’s tears, and the thought that maybe he’d never swim out in the ocean to see that blue-eyed boy again. It stung, though, always stung. But the mermaid scale somehow made it better when he gripped it in his fist and thought back to that wonderful time.

He heard a splash somewhere close by but paid it no mind, instead simply looking up. The splash came a bit louder, and the sounds of something hefting up from behind him. Sousuke paused.

“Are you,” A voice started. “Are you – Sousuke?”

Sousuke froze; no one should even know about this little place. No one save, two other people, and a fishboy. Sousuke turned around. Dark hair and bright blue eyes greeted him as he pulled himself up by his arms to beach across the slab of rock. Sousuke’s breath caught in his throat. The person slung a long blue tail across the rock. Mermaid.

“Are you Haruka?” Sousuke said instead, smiling despite himself. He held up the scale. “This, right here, you gave me this right?”

The mermaid nodded eagerly, a shy, small smile of his own appearing. Sousuke hurried forward and dropped to his knees, uncaring that he was soaking up his jeans. His hands hovered around Haruka. Haruka cupped his face and tilted it around. Sousuke let his arms come around to lazily hold Haruka.

“You are Sousuke,” He said. “You’ve gotten grumpier.”

Sousuke scoffed; “Is that the only thing you’ve noticed about me?”

“Your face is scarier, too,” Haruka teased. “What about me?”

“You’re - “ Sousuke choked. “You’re still really pretty. Maybe even prettier than the last time we saw each other.”

“Six years,” Haruka filled in. “You said your friend was leaving and then you never came back. Where did you go?”

“Tokyo,” Sousuke mumbled. “I got into a good school and moved for swimming. I – I learned to really love swimming because of you. I wanted to make a career out of it. But then - “ Sousuke laughed a bit bitterly. “Well, it doesn’t matter.”

“Why?” Haruka said, looking peevish. “If you love it so much why aren’t you swimming now? Why didn’t you come back to swim with me?”

Sousuke rubbed the back of his neck. “A lot of things happened. I promise I’ll tell you. But right now, as I am, I can’t swim. I hurt my shoulder.”

Haruka looked alarmed then, pushing aside the collar of his shirt to look at the brace underneath. He glared over at Sousuke. He pushed him away gently.

“You’re an idiot,” Haruka said.

“So I’ve been told a lot. I’m sorry, Haruka,” Sousuke said.

They fell into an awkward silence with Sousuke unsure if he should try to touch him again. The blue scales along his face shone brightly even in the dim light of the evening. He was flapping his tail irritably and fixing Sousuke with a broody expression. It was one he was used to in the years they’d been together. When Sousuke did something stupid, was too stubborn, Haruka would get quietly peeved. He didn’t blame him, though. Sousuke opened his mouth -

“Come into the water,” Haruka said. “Right now.”

“I told you, I can’t swim,” Sousuke blurted.

“I won’t let anything happen to you. Just – come into the water. Please.”

Haruka, slid backwards into the water and leaned against the slab. Sousuke kicked off his shoes and then the rest of his clothes until he was only in his boxers. He squatted and hesitated before sliding his legs in. He sat at the edge of the slab, watching as Haruka came around and caged him partly to it. He inhaled deeply and slid in. Haruka’s arms came around his torso, long tail sliding between his legs and keeping him afloat. He watched Sousuke critically, gauging as he used to when he was sure he would be fine. He let his hands travel slowly past Sousuke’s elbows and then to his hands. He gripped them firmly and swam slowly backwards, taking him deeper into the water.

“I read about this you know,” Sousuke joked, a twinge of fear in his voice. “Mermaids who fall into love and drag their lovers out to sea to drown them. Some of them were really pissed too when they did it. Something about scorn? You’re not - “

“Idiot. As if I would ever. You can’t swim anymore, and all I’ve wanted is to swim with you all these years,” Haruka mumbled. “_Trust me_.”

Sousuke exhaled. He kicked his feet lightly, trusting Haruka to keep his torso afloat as they swim in lazy little circles and zigzags. Haruka never took his eyes off of him. On water surface Sousuke could see the night sky ripple and break. He could feel the gentle pressure of Haruka’s hands. Sousuke leaned forward until their foreheads touched and he could clearly smell the saltwater and foreign sweetness of Haruka’s hair and skin. Haruka’s eyes crinkled and he told Sousuke to hold his breath as they dove down and Haruka pulled him through a school of fish. When they rose to break the surface again, Sousuke had pushed forward to seal mouths with Haruka. They lingered until Haruka was sheepishly ducking his head under water. Sousuke never felt so light.

He wouln’t stand on the world stage with Rin, but he’d be here, swimming like he’d truly enjoyed and wanted with Haruka.

-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/135142625868/souharu-week-2015-days-two-three


	12. SouHaru: Moonlit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Holy shit,” Sousuke blurted. “Holy shit, you’re not lying.”
> 
> “That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you,” Haru said petulantly.
> 
> “You’re a goddamn werewolf,” Sousuke kept on saying. “Who else even knows?”
> 
> “My parents. Makoto. Makoto’s parents,” Haru said. “And now you.”
> 
> Or, Sousuke gets dragged into Haru’s werewolf problems.

Of all the things Sousuke had found strange about Haru, being a werewolf took the cake. For one, he had no idea what werewolf was ever was so devoted to a diet of mackerel, but Haru had outdone him there. Regardless, it didn’t negate the fact that Sousuke now had a naked Haru curled up in his bed, skin speckled with dirt and scratches. It was a lucky occurrence that his parents were out for the week on some vacation about vows or something. The only other people as remotely romantic as Rin were actually his parents. He had wondered once if Rin and he had gotten switched at birth, but never made the thought known to either his parents nor Rin.

He had briefly considered dialing Makoto or Rin, hell even Kisumi to explain this. But he figured Haru was much like him; the less people to know the better. If things go too out of hand, he’d considering calling them up.

Sousuke sat on his computer chair, trying not to feel like a creeper for watching Haru sleeping so soundly in his bed. His eyes traced the long lashes settled on dirt-smudged cheeks, and the delicate looking hand resting on the pillow by Haru’s head. Sousuke choked a little. Truth be told, he was still trying to figure out if _he_ was the one actually dreaming.

One moment he was just taking the trash outside, and the next he was getting tackled by the biggest dog he’d ever seen. The dog had knocked Sousuke straight on his back, large black paws holding Sousuke’s shoulders down. It had stuck its snout right against his neck, sniffing loudly. Sousuke could only freeze, afraid his throat would be ripped out. He would have called out, but any noise might have prompted the dog to attack.

The dog nosed at him for a while before simply lying down on his chest and sighing in defeat. When Sousuke tried to sit up carefully, the dog had just cracked a lazy blue at him. Sousuke couldn’t help the wave of familiarity when he locked eyes with it. He stamped it down swiftly, trying to scramble away. Mid-scramble, the dog had started to shed fur like crazy, until pale, long limbs started to grow in its place. A familiar face morphed and lay flat on Sousuke’s chest.

When Sousuke brushed back the person’s bangs, he nearly bit straight through his tongue – It had been Haru. Luckily, it was late at night – far too late for anyone to be peeking through their windows and calling his parents up about _shenanigans_. The last thing he needed was his mother’s disapproving look and his father’s “talk”. He gathered Haru up, ignoring a dull ache in his shoulder, and hurried into the house with the naked swimmer.

But that was almost two hours ago and it was getting well into 2 AM. Haru had yet to stir. Sousuke put his head in his hands and sighed heavily. They had barely even been friends that long and he had already seen more of Haru than he had intended to.

“….Sousuke?” Haru mumbled, sleepily. “Sousuke?”

Sousuke looked up from between his fingers as Haru sat up. Sousuke’s sheets slid off his slim frame, pooling around his thighs, and leaving much of his upper torso naked. He had seen Haru in his swimsuit plenty of times. But here and now, Sousuke almost wanted to die of embarrassment. From Haru’s bare shoulders to the faint red scratches on his torso, Sousuke’s mouth was going dry. His eyes darted to where the sheets were pooling in Haru’s lap, one creamy thigh sticking out from under the sheets, as Haru brought a hand up to rub at his face. A faint trail of hair as headed its way down past his navel and under the sheets. Sousuke cleared his throat loudly.

“Mind telling me what’s happening?” Sousuke said, trying to sound annoyed and gruff. “One moment I’m about to get my throat torn out and the next,” Sousuke motioned to Haru’s stated. _“This.”_

Haru looked down. He had the decency to be as embarrassed as Sousuke felt at least. His entire face heated up, a blotchy red running from his cheeks down his neck. It was almost a welcome sight to see his calm gaze crumble in the face of embarrassment. He grimaced when he looked back up at Sousuke, a glare on his face.

“You better not have looked, Yamazaki,” Haru warned.

Sousuke threw his hands up. “As if I had a choice! Should I have left you out on my front lawn buck naked?”

Haru huffed, pulling the sheets further around him like a shield, a petulant look on his face. Sousuke glared right back at him. Haru looked away momentarily.

“Can I borrow some clothes?” He asked, quietly. “I’ll tell you everything afterwards.”

“I don’t know if anything I have can fit you,” Sousuke mumbled. “But sure.”

Sousuke dug through his drawers, looking at the few sweat pants and tshirts he owned, knowing that each was far too big on Haru. He eventually dug out a shirt he’d probably forgotten to get rid of from his last year in middle school. It would suffice, he figured, and threw it to Haru. He threw a pair of sweatpants, too, hoping the drawstrings would be enough for him.

“I’m not lending you my underwear, just so you know,” Sousuke grumbled.

“I wouldn’t dream of it,” Haru griped. “That sounds like something you and Rin would do, so I’d rather not intrude on that.”

“We do not! Don’t be a jerk, Nanase. I can still kick you out,” Sousuke said.

Both of them knew he wasn’t going to. He rubbed the back of his neck with a sigh and pointed a thumb at his bedroom door.

“I’ll wait for you downstairs. You hungry?” He mumbled.

Haru looked away again; “I’ll take whatever you’ll offer.”

Nothing more was said. Sousuke awkwardly left the room. Relief came with each step he put between them, before busying himself in the kitchen. Even with his cheeks burning he didn’t bother coming up with an excuse as to why he was frying up whatever bits of mackerel he had found in the fridge for Haru. He only looked resolutely down at the stove and cursed under his breath.

-

Haru crept down the stairs, holding one side of the baggy sweats up with a hand. He felt as if he might as well have been wearing a dress the way he had to keep it from sagging right off his waist. The shirt, small as it was compared to what Sousuke wore, was still pretty big. He teetered at the foot of the stairs unsure what room to enter before he caught a sniff of hot mackerel and made a beeline for the kitchen. He stood, looking sloppy and out of place at the doorway of the kitchen. His eyes grew at the sight, looking between Sousuke and the mackerel.

“Just hurry up and eat, dammit,” Sousuke interruped. “I’m still waiting for my answers!”

Haru pouted, settling down across from him at the little dining table. He dug in hungrily, table manners forgotten. Sousuke’s brows shot up. When he tried to slide a napkin Haru’s way, a low growl escaped the other boy’s throat. Sousuke instantly backed off. Haru slowed his pace, picking at the remaining mackerel. He mulled over his thoughts, mumbling a brief apology to Sousuke.

“You’re not allowed to laugh,”

Haru muttered. He looked intently at Sousuke until he begrudgingly agreed.

“I’m a werewolf,” Haru said with a sigh.

An ugly snort worked its way out of Sousuke’s closed lips, as he fought back impending laughter. Haru narrowed his eyes, jutting his chin out challengingly. Sousuke bit down onto his lower lip, forcing back his laughter. He exhaled loudly through his nose before talking again.

“You can’t be serious, Haruka. There’s no such thing as werewolves. Tell me the real reason,” Sousuke said.

“That _is_ the real reason. I’m a werewolf. Always have been,” Haru muttered, a bit of annoyance lacing the tone of his voice.

“Or do you have a better explanation for what I’m sure you saw?” Haru said, leveling him with hard blue eyes.

“I -” Sousuke began. Nothing logical came to mind. “I – don’t. But that can’t be the only proof you have , right? This can’t be real.”

“It’s real,” Haru muttered angrily. It felt mostly directly to himself. “I wish it wasn’t but it is what it is.”

Haru stood up from the table, chair scraping behind him. He looked at Sousuke for a moment before going around and standing in front of him. He closed his eyes with an annoyed sigh. He muttered something about Sousuke paying attention. In the time it took Sousuke to blink, a large set of ears and a tail had grown on Haru. Large, black triangular ears sat atop Haru’s head. When Sousuke made a strangled noise in his throat, they stood perfectly still and at attention. Sousuke glanced down, spotting a thick tail drooping behind Haru’s leg.

“Holy shit,” Sousuke blurted. “Holy shit, you’re not lying.”

“That’s what I’ve been trying to tell you,” Haru said petulantly.

“You’re a goddamn _werewolf,_” Sousuke kept on saying. “Who else even knows?”

“My parents. Makoto. Makoto’s parents,” Haru said. “And now you.”

“Wait, back up, Rei and Nagisa don’t know? _Rin_ doesn’t know?” Sousuke asked, standing up.

Haru shook his head; “My grandmother had warned me not to tell too many people. Even if they’re friends, I need to be wise about sharing it.” He looked down. “I hadn’t meant to drag you into this.”

Sousuke felt a wave of guilt come over him, needling at him for making it hard on Haru. He awkwardly held Haru by his shoulders, nudging him a little. He lookied down and into his face where his bangs were hiding his eyes from Sousuke. Sousuke brushed aside some of his bangs, unsuccessfully moving it behind Haru’s ear before it dropped back into place. Haru huffed, unable to stop the small smile working its way on his face.

“It’s fine, I guess. I won’t tell anyone. Not even Rin, if it’ll make you feel better,” Sousuke said.

“It would,” Haru mumbled.

Sousuke had yet to let go of him. He looked up shyly through his bangs. Sousuke’s expression had softened, brows drawn easily and mouth curved into that lax frown of his. Sousuke looked back at him thoughtfully. His thumbs rubbed circles into the bones of Haru’s shoulders reassuringly.

“So, what happened? What brings you all the way out to Sano, anyway?” Sousuke said.

Haru’s ears drooped. Sousuke fought back a gawk at how cute it made him, focusing instead on Haru’s face. His hands reluctantly fell away. Haru’s tail swished nervously, and a slight blush worked its way back to his cheeks.

“There’s a full moon out tonight. You know how it goes, werewolves change whether they want to or not during full moons. Usually I can control it, but the full moon makes it harder. I forgot to restock on medicine, and Makoto is away with the family this weekend. He usually helps me through it,” Haru explained.

He shot Sousuke a side long glance, eyes narrowed. Sousuke couldn’t help the feeling that he was getting blame for something. His own hackles raised as he waited for Haru to continue.

“You came over a few days ago, remember? It rained when you and Rin were coming over and I let you use a towel to dry off. Only, when the full moon is coming, I get a little woozy sometimes. I had forgotten to do the laundry. Your scent was still all over it,” Haru muttered, embarrassment growing.

“So, you came looking for me?” Sousuke said, awkwardly.

“Unfortunately,” Haru grumbled. “Or else I’d be at home making a mess of the living room instead. It’s all your fault.”

“I didn’t ask you to come here! You ran over here on your own,” Sousuke shot back. “You could have killed me!”

“I wouldn’t have killed you, idiot Sousuke! I li -” Haru stopped. Then he briskly walked away from Sousuke.

An unholy swirling erupted in Haru’s chest. His hands were sweating as he considered just walking home bare foot at 3 AM all the way to Iwatobi. He could always just transform and run home. But what about Sousuke’s clothes? A petty part of him just wanted to ditch it anywhere, if it meant getting away from the other boy. Sousuke’s feet pounded loudly right behind him.

“You what? Haruka come back here and finish what you said!” Sousuke called, fast walking after him.

He grabbed Haru by the upper arm. He turned him quickly and pulled him until he was nearly crushed against his chest. Haru shoved at his chest with his free hand, and scowled. Sousuke grabbed his other hand, large fingers wrapping around the thin wrist. He was too heated up to let the situation sink in. The only thing before him was Haru’s petulant expression and the feeling that he couldn’t let him get away with what he had nearly spilled. Sousuke’s heart pounded in his chest, echoing loudly in his ears. He only looked to Haru.

“Finish what you were saying,” Sousuke prompted.

A tension was rising between them the longer Haru refused to answer. Sousuke was a patient guy, if he was being truthful. He had grown up with one of the most impatient guys on the planet after all. He’d stand there until the sun rose up if he had to until Haru said something. Still, he kept his hands loose. If Haru wanted to break away, he could. He truly wouldn’t stop him. Haru made no move to separate

Haru let his head hang, forehead nearly brushing against Sousuke’s chest. His ears drooped again. His hands moved down until they were gripping the hem of Sousuke’s shirt. Haru spoke softly, almost as if it were too annoying to have to say out loud.

“I wouldn’t have hurt you because I like you. Its why I can trust Makoto to take care of me during this time. But the like I have for you, it might be different that Makoto’s,” Haru admitted.

“Oh,” Sousuke said simply. “You like me.”

Haru nodded. Sousuke rested a hand to the back of Haru’s head, fingers disappearing into dark tresses.

“That’s fine, then. I like you, too. Maybe more than a friend,” Sousuke mumbled.

Haru’s head shot up. Sousuke rested a gentle hand to one of Haru’s elbows. Haru watched Sousuke part his lips, considering his next words.

“Stay the night, Haruka. I think we’re both really tired. We’ll talk more tomorrow,” Sousuke suggested.

Haru smiled a little, nodding. “Tomorrow,” He agreed. Then he shook off Sousuke’s hand, frowning a bit. “Don’t pet me.”

Sousuke rolled his eyes. He grabbed Haru around his waist, lifting him until he had no choice but to wrap his legs and arms around him. He headed back up the stairs, one hand buried into Haru’s hair as he walked to his bedroom.

“I make no promises,” Sousuke said. “No more whining. I’m tired, Haruka.”

He gently laid Haru down on his bed, hovering over him. Haru tugged at the collar of Sousuke’s shirt, motioning to the empty space near the wall. Sousuke crawled in, fitting his chest to Haru’s back.

“No promises, Sousuke,” Haru mumbled sleepily.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/140342599198/holy-shit-sousuke-blurted-holy-shit-youre


	13. SouHaru: Amnesia (WIP)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Haru would never forget Sousuke’s broad shoulders or towering height. He’d been around Makoto and up close and personal to Sousuke enough times to memorize the slope of his shoulders and his lazy gait. Even after these three years, he was not about to forget Sousuke Yamazaki or his impressive swimming , geeky smile and stupid handshake he and Rin did. What he didn’t expect was for Sousuke to forget him, forget anyone.
> 
> -  
WIP, and maybe one day I'll get back to it.

Haru would never forget Sousuke’s broad shoulders or towering height. He’d been around Makoto and up close and personal to Sousuke enough times to memorize the slope of his shoulders and his lazy gait. Even after these three years, he was not about to forget Sousuke Yamazaki or his impressive swimming , geeky smile and stupid handshake he and Rin did. What he didn’t expect was for Sousuke to forget him, forget anyone.

“Yama – _Sousuke_,” Haru said quietly.

Sousuke stopped, looking over at him from his place behind the cash register in the book store. Sousuke cocked an eyebrow, lazily resting a forearm over the top of the cash register as he looked over Haru. He hadn’t changed much, Haru saw. He had gotten a bit taller, his hair was still the same style, and he still had his “I give no shits” droopy eyed expression. He hadn’t lost his bulk either, though Haru wasn’t sure if he was still swimming. He looked tired, though, slight shadows under his eyes. He wore a polo shirt with the book store’s logo and name on it and a name tag with “Yamazaki” printed on it.

“You know me?” Sousuke said.

Haru opened his mouth but found he couldn’t form words. He set his eyebrows down over his eyes and frowned. Sousuke may have been mischievous, liked to tease, but he wasn’t cruel. Haru frowned harder.

“Of course I know you,” Haru said, blandly. “You’re Sousuke Yamazaki, aren’t you? Why wouldn’t I know you?”

Sousuke’s eyebrows hit his hairline. He pretended to brush off dust from the top of the cash register where his arm lay, not meeting Haru’s eyes for a moment.

“Where have you been all this time?” Haru said, getting sick of Sousuke not responding. His voice turned sharp, quiet as it was. “Rin has been worried. Did you fight? It’s a bit cruel to not talk to your best friend for this long. Not talk to anyone – “

“Yeah, I am Sousuke Yamazaki,” Sousuke said, interrupting. “But, I have no idea who Rin is, and I definitely don’t know who the hell you are.”

Haru’s eyes widened, searching Sousuke’s face for any signs of lies. He looked as stoic and blank as ever, frowning like the same Sousuke Haru had always seen. If Haru had been Rin, he would have grabbed Sousuke by his shirt front and screamed in his face about joking around. Haru clenches his fists, still staring Sousuke down. Haru’s stomach churned. Sousuke wasn’t lying.

“How can you not know?” Haru asked. “How can you not know Rin?”

Sousuke passed a big hand through his hair, looking more tired and worn than he had even when he was fighting off pain at Regionals in their last year of High School. Sousuke looked sidelong at Haru, grimacing as if debating whether telling him was a good decision or not.

“I lost my memory or something,” Sousuke said. “I woke up in the hospital a few years back with no memory of anything and now here I am.”

“You expect me to believe that?” Haru said. He did though; there was nothing but truth in Sousuke’s words. “You would have had your phone on you. You’re bad at directions but you’re not that stupid.”

Sousuke was getting angry now, a familiar looking expression of irritation flashing across his face. He looked like he was forcing himself to stay calm. Sousuke gripped the top of the cash register.

“My phone got destroyed. I had a bummed shoulder. A shitty medical record. Parents at the other end of the country. I felt like shit,” Sousuke said. “I figured I’ll just start over. Why else would I be so far away from home?”

Haru grit his teeth. “You’re running away,” He said. “You’ve turned into a coward and now you’re running away.”

“Look,” Sousuke said, raising his voice. “Are you going to buy these damn books or not? Business may be slow here but I don’t see the point in you wasting my time.”

Haru shoved the money into Sousuke’s hands before scooping up the books. He looked over Sousuke one more time, how he’d grown weary where he was confident. Haru wasn’t much for extended conversation, even Yamazaki seemed rather chatty for their conversation. He felt tired, maybe even more so than Sousuke looked. Sousuke was wordlessly counting the money, placing it neatly within the cash register and collecting Haru’s change. He held out his fist, money in hand, and Haru suddenly remembered the fist-bump he and Rin would always do. His head felt hot like he was swimming in boiling water.

“Keep the change,” Haru said, harshly. He turned on his heel and sped out of the store.

Haru jammed the books up under his arm and quickly fished out his phone. He rarely used it, but he figured this was too important to wait until he got home. He hovered over the two numbers on his speed dial. In the end, he called Makoto first and then added Rin into it as a three-way call.

“I found Sousuke,” He said.

-

Rin cried. Of course Rin cried. But this time Haru couldn’t bring himself to tease him about it. He’d been worried all this time. Rin didn’t go a day without asking if they’d heard from Sousuke, if they’d seen him. He’d gone to Tokyo to for university, and then he’d just dropped off the map.

“He was okay?” Rin asked. He’d asked about four times already, Haru noted. “He was really okay?”

“Yes,” Haru answered. “He was okay. He looked the same. Just tired.”

He could hear Rin inhale a shaky breath and maybe even wipe at his eyes. Haru closed his own as Makoto piped up in the background. He could soothe Rin better. Makoto called to Rin softly.

“It’s okay, Rin,” Makoto said. “It’s okay, now, because now we know where he is. Right Haru?”

“Yeah – “

“But he doesn’t remember!” Rin cried. “He’s been out there this whole time without any memory of me or us or high school. What has he been doing this whole time?”

“He works at a little book shop,” Haru said. “I can’t vouch for him, but he didn’t look…unhappy.”

Rin breathed out then, a wet sounding thing that rattled inside of Haru. He couldn’t see Makoto but he could almost feel the worry radiating off of him through the phone. Haru dragged his nails across the cover of one of the books he’d bought earlier. Rin breathed a bit more, quietly this time and it seemed as if he’d calmed down.

“That’s…good. That’s good,” Rin murmured. “Haru – “

“I’ll look out for him,” Haru said. “I…” _Will make him remember_.

Haru frowned, unsure of where that had come from. It wasn’t as if he knew Sousuke very well, much less at all. This would be more fitting for Rin to do. But Rin was even farther away from home than Sousuke was. But while Rin had been plowing through even with the worry of where Sousuke was on his mind, Haru wondered what would happen now that Rin _did_ know. He stopped scraping the book cover.

“…Count on me,” Haru said, in finality.

“Haru,” Makoto said, softly. _Are you sure?_

“Yeah,” Haru said. _I’m sure._

“Really? Even through the phone? You can do that telepathy thing through the phone?” Rin said, voice hoarse but genuinely amused. Makoto sounded as if he was smiling when he spoke.

“Somethings just come naturally,” Makoto said.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/175097130958/amnesia-souharu-wip


	14. SouRin :“I’m really drunk, please help me get safely out of the way so I don’t ruin our friend’s wedding.”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> CASTLES-FOR-KINGS asked:
> 
> #49 Kurotsuki or Sourin!! :D
> 
> 049:“I’m really drunk, please help me get safely out of the way so I don’t ruin our friend’s wedding.”

Haru’s glare was boring its way into the back of Rin’s head. With each passing moment Nagisa and Sousuke were slamming back shots, Rin could feel the hole getting larger and larger. Somewhere to the side he could hear Makoto trying to calm Haru down, having probably sensed the waves of hostility coming from his newly wedded husband. Rin thought it unfair that Haru was tearing into him when he should have been glaring daggers at Rei, too, since Nagisa was the one to start all of this. (And by Nitori’s quick thinking, Momo had been forced away from the alcohol as well).

Rin was beginning to understand that there was a reason Sousuke never drank. And that reason was quickly making itself overwhelming known the longer Makoto and Haru’s wedding went on. For such a big guy, Sousuke sure got drunk quickly. Nagisa all but dead drank him under the table before the big guy was red-faced and gone. It was cute at first, considering the footage Rin now had. But it was quickly becoming too much for even Rin.

Alone, in the privacy of their home Sousuke’s secret whiny habits were endearing to Rin. Whatever stupid humor they shared, and ridiculousness he had to deal with from Sousuke was his and his alone to appreciate. But right now, shit-faced and carrying on with Nagisa was _not_ how Rin wanted to have to haul Sousuke out of their friends’ wedding.

“Sousuke,” Rin called. “I think its time we went home, big guy.”

Sousuke furrowed his brow, blinking sluggishly as he tried to zero in on Rin, but looking as though he couldn’t decide which part of Rin was actually talking to him. Rin’s hand came to intercept the shot glass before Nagisa’s prompting could get him to take another drink. Rin took a firm hold of Sousuke’s hands, prying him away from where Nagisa had leaned over and was (loudly) whispering about their plan later when the party would lull to bag the swan at the other end of the lake where Haru had been dead set on having their wedding overlook, and release it to ravage the guests. Rin could already tell who would be doing most of the bagging and he wasn’t going to let Sousuke die such a dishonorable death if he had a say in it. Nagisa was just about to propose something else before Rin cut him off.

“Nope, none of that. We’re leaving,” Rin said.

“No fair, Rin-chan! Sou-chan and I were just about to get to the good part. You know, a friendly game of Never Have I?” Nagisa all but whined. “Take a shot for everything you never done!”

“Absolutely not,” Rin growled. “Sousuke. Up!”

Sousuke reached out, pawing at air as he tried to grab at Rin’s forearm. A good solid minute passed before Rin was sighing in exasperation and dragging Sousuke up by the sleeve of his shirt and fitting him against his side. Sousuke threw an arm around Rin’s shoulders and pressed a cheek to the top of Rin’s head.

“I ever tell you that you’re a good arm rest, Rin?” Souske slurred. “Perfect height and everything. But you’re always perfect.”

A drunk Sousuke was a terribly loose-lipped Sousuke. Haru blankly looked between the two of them, as if he couldn’t tolerate Sousuke’s dumb semi-romantic ramblings, when it was Rin that had had to sit through Haru and Makoto’s sappy vow recitals to compromise at least three series of shoujo mangas. He might have cried through the whole thing, but that was besides the point. Sousuke trailed his eyes slowly over to Haru. Rin could feel the goofy smile spreading on his face. Sousuke waved stupidly at him. Rin dug his fingers into Sousuke’s belt loops and hurried along. Sousuke let his head loll around and called to their friends.

“Bye, Makoto, Haruka,” Sousuke said. “I’m glad you didn’t jump in the punch bowl. Rin said you might try.”

Makoto had his hands under Haru’s arms before Haru could lunge at their friend. He deposited him in the booth beside Nagisa where he couldn’t get loose and an overflowing shot glass was in his hands.

Sousuke stumbled, one foot catching behind the other as he dropped more of his weight on Rin, nearly taking them both down. Sousuke huffed hotly into Rin’s ear making him move his shoulder up to cover it. Rin jabbed him in the gut with his elbow.

“Quit it,” He hissed.

“I,” Sousuke began, licking his lips. “I saw you, you know. When Makoto slid the ring onto Haruka’s finger. You cried.”

“Of course, I cried. It was a beautiful moment,” Rin mumbled.

He yelped a bit when Sousuke teetered too far to one side and they had to heel bounce to get back on track. Rin’s face burned but he could only grumble as he tried to readjust his grip on Sousuke. He was suddenly glad Sousuke had insisted that he get a driver’s license now because hauling Sousuke’s heavy ass on the trains would have been too much to bear. Sousuke sniffed a bit, patting his way along Rin’s body clumsily as he tried to find Rin’s hand before giving up.

“You want that, too,” Sousuke said. “You could have Gou walk you down the aisle and everything.”

Rin chuckled. He could. It wasn’t a bad picture. He had actually imagined that he would be the one walking Gou down the aisle one day. But the opposite picture wasn’t bad either. She would all but agree anyway.

“She could. We could even get Kisumi’s dog to be the ring bearer and run towards us with the rings. How about that?” Rin teased.

“We could have soda tabs instead of rings,” Sousuke said, a little too seriously.

“No!” Rin interrupted. “Jeez. Not a romantic bone in your body.”

Sousuke pressed his face into the side of Rin’s face, a gesture akin to a cat. They slowed a bit. Partially because Rin was getting tired and partially because he was curious as to what Sousuke would do. Sousuke hummed, slumping further against Rin.

“Hey, Rin -”

“You are not proposing to me drunk and that’s final,” Rin said, cutting him off.

He patted the one of Sousuke’s cheeks affectionately. Truth be told he already had a little velvet box tucked away somewhere at home. If Sousuke survived his hangover the next day, Rin would gladly consider showing him the contents of it. Rin huffed and drew both of Sousuke’s arms over each shoulder, feeling his knees hit the backs of his as they shuffled home. As long as Sousuke promised never to drink again, Rin couldn’t see any other better person to spend his whole life with.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/142328888958/49-kurotsuki-or-sourin-d


	15. SouRin: 062:"I beat you at Mario Kart and now you're banishing me to the couch for the night?”

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> DELUSIONALKIING asked:
> 
> 062:"I beat you at Mario Kart and now you're banishing me to the couch for the night?” Sourin where ssk win

There were certain things Sousuke had learned about Matsuokas over the years, having been welcomed into their family. Though, forcefully dragged into it wasn’t a bad assumption either.

The first was that Matsuokas ran hot – they never did anything half-assed, and never liked anything without near obsessive commitment. The second was that they were moved easily to emotions. Sousuke had spent one movie night with Mama Matsuoka and her children and had been drowned in tears and used tissues after sitting through a nostalgic rewatching of The Fox and The Hound. Third was, unsurprisingly, their love for a fit body. Gou (and secretly Rin) had apparently inherited the trait from their mother who had been enamored with her husband’s muscles first, and his overwhelming kindness second. Fourth was that Matsuokas were horrible _sore losers_.

Which was how Sousuke found himself standing regretfully in the hallway outside his and Rin’s bedroom door as the other shoved blankets and pillows into his arms, still muttering under his breath angrily about his loss to Sousuke over Mario Kart.

“Rin,” Sousuke started, trying to interrupt Rin’s ranting. Once he got going, he wasn’t likely to stop until he’d burned himself out. “Rin -”

“I can’t believe I even agreed to date you,” Rin muttered, more to himself than to Sousuke. “But who could have blamed me right? With your stupid nice face, and pretty eyes.”

Sousuke set his mouth in a thin line as Rin heaped a teddy bear onto the top of the pile, nearly effectively blocking Sousuke’s view in front of him. He could still see Rin pacing around the room, huffing to himself. He didn’t dare move unless he wanted anymore scolding than he’d already gotten.

“You’d think you’d use those muscles for good, you asshole,” Rin said, a little louder this time. “But _no, _instead you go and blue-shell your boyfriend who was clearly going to win!”

“Rin,” Sousuke tried again, weakly. “I beat you at Mario Kart. Are you seriously banishing me to the couch for the night?”

When Rin whipped around on him, Sousuke realized the error of his ways and bit back a groan of frustration. He pressed his face into the bear’s back, smushing it into the mountain of pillows and sheets in his arms. He glanced up long enough to see Rin leaning forward with his hands on his hips and a scowl on his face.

“The hell I am! Sleeping out there by yourself should make you think twice about using dirty tactics!” Rin hissed.

With that, he all but slammed the door in Sousuke’s face. Sousuke could hear the sounds of his feet padding on the soft carpet and the groan of their bed as he dropped into it. He stood out there for a good few more minutes, seriously wondering if he should risk opening the door and appealing to Rin and probably making things worse. Or, doing as Rin said and sleep on the goddamn couch. He looked down at the bear.

“Looks like its you and me then, huh?” Sousuke murmured.

He sighed through his nose and made his walk of shame to the couch. This is what he got for being so stupidly enamored with Rin from a young age and letting him win more than he should have. Sousuke couldn’t even bring himself to regret it. Rin was always best when he was smiling in triumph (or smiling at him, if he was honest).

Sousuke threw the pillows down before snapping the sheet and blanket out. He placed the bear at the top of the pillow, then situated himself down with an exasperated exhale. It was a bit of a tight fit, since his feet dangled off the couch. But he’d made due. A bit of shifting and one last forlorn look at the hallway met Sousuke before he was finally drifting off to sleep. Only the ticking of the kitchen clock resounded in the living room.

Sousuke winced a bit in his sleep. He was dreaming that he was being held down by some mountain cat, its sharp teeth inches from his neck. He ground his teeth trying to shift better on the couch, stuck between his dream and waking up. When the cat yelled “Oi!”, Sousuke jolted awake.

He blinked, vision fuzzy to see Rin glaring half-heartedly down at him from where he was perched on his chest. Sousuke brought his legs up to trap Rin between them. Rin looked away to the side, the little bear clutched between his hands. Sousuke rubbed at his eyes, not noticing the way Rin’s eyes followed the movement or how his eyes softened.

“Rin? What happened? Did you have a nightmare?” Sousuke asked, voice slurring.

Rin shook his head. He laid his hands down across Sousuke’s chest, the bear caught between them, and then rested his chin on top of them. His long lashes curved over his eyes, a sheepish look coming over his face. He twisted the fabric of Sousuke’s sleeping shirt.

“It wasn’t a nightmare,” Rin mumbled. “But I couldn’t sleep. Its no good if you’re not snoring in my ear.”

Sousuke frowned. He briefly considered dumping Rin on his ass. He didn’t. Rin tucked his face into the curve of Sousuke’s neck. Sousuke shivered at the ticklish feel of his lashes on his skin.

“Come back to bed,” Rin whined. “I’m not done being mad at you, but you can consider it the first step in making it up to me.”

“Just the first? What do I have to do after?” Sousuke grumbled around a yawn.

Sousuke could feel the devilish smirk against his neck. His heart rate jolted as he bought his arms up and around Rin’s body to keep him from moving away. Not that he would, anyway.

“Let me win tomorrow when we have a rematch,” Rin said simply.

Sousuke rolled his eyes. If it meant he could sleep in his own bed next to Rin again, he would do it. With a sigh of defeat, he let Rin drag him and teddy up by his arm, and followed him hand in hand into the room. Rin pushed him down into the sheets with a bright and wicked smile as Sousuke closed his eyes in inevitable defeat, loving every second of it. The last thing Sousuke cared to remember was the feeling of Rin’s lips mapping every inch of him. 

-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/142242982053/062i-beat-you-at-mario-kart-and-now-youre


	16. SouKisu Week: Day 3: AU

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prince of Stride AU. Sousuke refuses to reenter Stride since Rin had gone abroad to be with another team. Kisumi makes good on turning him around.
> 
> Less about Stride and more about SouKisu!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/140100018693/soukisu-week-day-3-auprince-of-stride-au

It was barely the middle of the second week of the new school year when Kisumi had gotten a call from Rin’s little sister, Gou. He had remembered Gou. She was a cute little girl, with the same shade of maroon-colored hair as her brother, with a bright but quickly angered personality. Not unlike her brother, whatever she threw herself into, she did it full force without no room for regrets. Unlike her brother, she was much easier to approach.

“This is Kisumi-kun, right?” She said over the phone. “From Iwatobi Middle School?”

“That’s me, all right. Who is this?” Kisumi answered back.

He looked up to see Seijuuro roughly clapping Momo on his back. He pointed down the pathways they were training on, showing Momo and Ai each where they were lacking. Kisumi looked back down at his clipboard, waiting for Gou’s reply.

“Rin’s little sister,” She said, voice wavering a bit. It came stronger with her next words. “I heard Samezuka’s Stride Club is trying to make a come back. Is that true?”

“It’s true. But I’m afraid, we’ve only got three runners at the moment,” Kisumi admitted.

“Sousuke-kun, wouldn’t happen to be one of those runners would he?” Gou asked, tone hopeful.

“No. He hasn’t shown up to try-out,” Kisumi said with a sigh. “Honestly. He’s so stubborn.”

Gou clicked her tongue. “He’s not the only one. Actually, Sousuke-kun is part of the reason I was calling. You see, my brother is coming back to Japan. He’s transferring into a new school. Ah, Kakyoin I think it is? He hasn’t contacted anyone. He’s being so _mean_. I was hoping – I was hoping that facing off against his old friends might help bring him back.”

Kisumi’s eyes widened. He looked around blearily for a moment, wondering for a brief, tense moment that Sousuke might have been around. Anywhere. It was only the four of them. Kisumi slumped back against the hard bench back. He readjusted the phone on his shoulder as he flipped up the papers to start rapidly writing what Gou had told him on a blank sheet of paper.

“I’m trying to get the Stride Club at Iwatobi High reopened. Makoto-sempai and Haruka-sempai both go here. I don’t think it’ll be hard to find members,” Gou said.

Kisumi let a slight, sly grin spread across his face. She definitely had his attention now.

“I should have expected as much from Rin’s little sister. You were clever back in middle school, too, Gou-chan! You’re as sick as I am about everyone just running away, huh?”

“It’s _Kou_,” She correcting, huffing. “But, yes. I’m sick of it. The only place they can really settle this all out is End of Summer. What do you think, Kisumi-kun? Can you get Sousuke-kun back in the game?”

Kisumi was really grinning now. Not a far ways off was Seijuuro, probably making Momo cry judging by the pained noises flying his way. He could see Ai’s shaky form too.

“It would be my pleasure, G – _Kou_-chan. Don’t you worry. I’ll get Sousuke to come around. They’ve let this go on too long,” Kisumi said.

He hung up shortly after, stretching his limbs. He called to Seijuuro that he’d be back, and set off into the school to try and root out Sousuke. If he knew him as well as he thought he did, Sousuke was probably watching their practice like a ghost in the distance. Kisumi had to chuckle; Even at the heart o f it all, Sousuke truly loved Stride as much as he did.

-

Kisumi could see the exact moment Sousuke was going to become taciturn when he approached him. It was little wonder how they’d gotten along over the years considering how completely opposite their personalities could be. But then, Rin had been Sousuke’s opposite, too, and they had gotten on like two sides of a coin. Kisumi hadn’t really thought that he and Sousuke had a difficult or uneasy relationship. They’d always gotten along rather well, but the hole left by Rin always caused a burn for Sousuke that anyone who knew could see. Especially Kisumi.

Regardless, Kisumi raised a hand, the long jacket sleeves of the Samezuka uniform almost engulfing his hands as he waved to Sousuke. He smiled at him for good measure, watching the exasperated but resigned slump of his shoulders.

“Morning, Sou~suke!” Kisumi said. “You can already guess why I’m here, right?”

Sousuke huffed, digging his hands into his pockets. “I have an idea,” He muttered.

He craned his neck, a silent motion that Kisumi might as well keep walking with him if he was going to listen to what he had to say. Kisumi hummed, lacing his fingers behind his back as he stepped in line with Sousuke.

“So, recently we got some new members. The Stride Club is open again,” Kisumi started. “The club room is still pretty shabby since there hasn’t really been any activity for a while. But, Sei and I have been keeping it fixed up! So far we’ve got three runners, and -”

“No,” Sousuke said firmly. “You already know how I feel about Stride.”

Kisumi pouted. “Then why did you bother letting me even try to tell you about it?”

Sousuke shrugged, “I figured I might as well let you get it out of your system now or else you’ll keep pestering me about it.”

“That’s mean!” Kisumi admonished. “I genuinely wanted to talk to you about this.”

Sousuke scoffed lightly, shrugging on his bag a little more over his shoulder. He turned his face away from Kisumi but otherwise didn’t make any move to escape from him. Kisumi considered that a plus. Sousuke always had a habit of simply walking away from his problems now and then. But if there was one thing Kisumi was, it was persistent. He pouted for good measure, knowing Sousuke could see it from the corner of his eye.

“You know we really need you. It’s not the same without you there,” Kisumi added in. “Sei’s a good captain, you know. I think you’d really enjoy running with him. His little brother, Momo, also joined a brought his friend with him! They’re really rough, you know, but I think -”

“Can’t you just drop it?” Sousuke interrupted gruffly. “I’m not running. I quit Stride. So don’t bother me about it anymore.”

“But you love Stride, Sou, I know you do. So why not get back into it?” Kisumi tried.

“You know why. So there’s no point. Drop it,” Sousuke said, in finality.

He hesitated a moment when he looked at Kisumi before he finally parted from his friend. Kisumi watched Sousuke leaving and wondered why out of everyone, it was always the hardest to see Sousuke’s back disappearing into the distance. He briefly regretted not reaching out and stopping him, but what was done was done.

Kisumi sighed, already feeling a headache coming on. He hadn’t really known how he’d got caught up all this drama. Yet here he was. Kisumi rubbed the back of his neck, thinking that Rin shouldn’t have just uprooted everyone’s lives so suddenly and leave everyone (read: Kisumi) to try and push all the pieces back together.

-

Well into the third week, Kisumi had barely seen much of Sousuke. Part of it was that they didn’t have the same class this year nor last. It made him feel uneasy, and a strange ache sometimes filled him. When he’d see Sousuke in the distance as he helped with practices, heading around campus with Ai and Momo during breaks to try and round up members, Kisumi would pause, always turned in his direction. Maybe Sousuke would see him, too, maybe he’d pretend he didn’t. Maybe if he could have called out, reached out like way back then when he’d watch the smooth take-over Makoto and Haru would do, it would be just that simple to connect again with Sousuke.

Either way, he’d spent too long simply staring in Sousuke’s direction before his feet finally made the decision for him. While Seijuuro was busy torturing Ai and Momo, Kisumi had slipped away and up into the school.

Sousuke was exactly where Kisumi thought he might be. He was on the second floor, looking out the windows as Momo and Ai practiced their take-overs. There was no way that he hadn’t seen Kisumi running across the courtyard to the school, however. He didn’t turn around when Kisumi approached him.

“Well, aren’t you a man of nostalgia, Sou,” Kisumi said, coming up to stand beside him. “I thought you didn’t like Stride anymore?”

“I don’t,” Sousuke said childishly. “Is it a crime to want to stand and look?”

“No, not really. Depends on what you’re looking at,” Kisumi said.

He laughed at Sousuke’s exasperated expression, leaning a little too much into his space. Sousuke didn’t comment on it, nor did he try to put space between them.

“Why don’t you just come back? It’s still in you, isn’t it? Between you, me, and Sei, we could definitely get the club on its feet easier.”

“I can’t even run that well, anymore,” Sousuke petulantly stated.

It was a weak argument and they both knew it.

“You _can_. You just don’t want to,” Kisumi argued back.

He heaved a sigh and leaned against the side of the wall, looking out the window to where the Stride club were taking a break. Sousuke shoved his hands into his pockets, a usual sign that he was going to try and get out of talking too hard about things. Kisumi was used to it anyway. He’d been relationer to both Sousuke and Haru in middle school. He and Makoto had majored in dealing with taciturn people.

“Rin is back in Japan,” Kisumi started. “He’s part of Kakyoin High’s Stride team.”

He saw Sousuke’s form go rigid, but he didn’t look at him. Kisumi frowned and pushed forward more. Kisumi pushed off the wall and stood until he and Sousuke were toe to toe. Sousuke gave him a sidelong glance but otherwise made no movements.

“Gou-chan called me, too. Iwatobi High is restarting their club. They want to compete again. They want to show Rin that we’re still here. They love Stride, Sousuke, and they want to use it to reconnect with a precious friend,” Kisumi continued, getting a bit more forceful. “But what do _you_ want, Sousuke?”

Sousuke blinked then, fully looking at Kisumi. His eyes widened. “I -”

Kisumi hesitated for only a moment before gripping the sleeve of Sousuke’s uniform jacket. He exhaled loudly. Then he took a hold of both of Sousuke’s arms, thumbs digging into the inner part of his elbows.

“Run with us. _Connect_ with us,” Kisumi said. “I – We can’t do it without you.”

“You love Stride, Sou. You love to run more than anything. You and I want things to go back to how they were, but they can’t,” Kisumi said. Sousuke winced. “But with this team, we can be with Makoto, and Haru, and Rin again.”

Sousuke laughed, a little disbelievingly, a little hopefully.

“Just like that?” He asked.

One big hand was hovering over Kisumi’s. Kisumi nodded, smiling kindly.

“Just like that,” He said. “What do you say?”

Sousuke sighed loudly, tipping his head back. A few seconds seemed to crawl by before he looked back to Kisumi. He grinned, holding up a hand as he cocked his head to the side. Kisumi’s bounced on his heels, rising up on his toes to slap a hand against Sousuke’s.

Before Sousuke could pull his hand back, Kisumi firmly curled his fingers towrds the back of his hand, and drew him in close into a sloppy hug.

“I’m glad,” Kisumi said, pressing his face into Sousuke’s chest. He didn’t linger more than a minute before he pulled away and put a bit of space between them.

“I hope you’re prepared for some killer training,” Kisumi said.

Sousuke rolled his eyes, knocking shoulders with his friend. He nodded towards the courtyard.

“We’ll still need another runner, though, if we want to be considered official. Unless you’re going to be running, too?” Sousuke said.

Kisumi blanched, “Don’t even joke like that!”

Sousuke laughed, heading towards the stairs with Kisumi only a few quick steps behind. They knocked shoulders on their way down the stairs, startling a first year as they broke into a run to the courtyard. Kisumi smiled secretly to himself. His hand still felt warm.

-


	17. SouKisu: Good Night & Take Care

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> vent fic. Kisumi pines and lets go.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> vent fic, one-sided/unrequited feelings. soukisu w hinted sourin.

Kisumi had always prided himself on being quite sharp with the subtle things. 

Like a sixth sense, maybe a spider-sense, his whole body seemed to zing with an inkling. He could track the way a hand might stay too long, or a look may change just so, too quick for either party to know. It was exciting. Like he was a part of a secret in a secret; Like a secret agent. He might have hid the turning gears in his brain under breezy smiles and mischievous quips, but his eyes were just seemed to hone in on the potential curve on hidden feelings. 

Case in point: Sousuke being in love with Rin for years. 

Maybe it was because they were just kids. Maybe it was that Rin and Sousuke, always looking forward but never truly at the edges. There was nothing bad about it, but some things could get lost along the way. It was good they had Kisumi, though. Kisumi was an expert at corners. But he’d called Sousuke’s feelings from middle school. Sousuke had always been broody and quiet, but when it came to Rin, Kisumi could almost smell the rain cloud around him. An overcast storm, neither raining nor dissipating, only building up a haze of gray. 

Years later, with both his friends having come home, Kisumi could still the storm brewing between them. On the surface, he could see a lot of what they’d wanted to think they’d separated on. Two friends reunited after years. A love story to make his mother cry, Kisumi thought. He could see it in the way they still moved in tandem, like shadow and body. 

But Kisumi could see the way Sousuke’s eyes dipped, tracking the stretch of Rin’s smile. The way that little habit of Rin’s - digging his knee into Sousuke’s side - lasted just a smidge longer than friendly. He wondered if they suspected, if they knew. He couldn’t help his giggle, though. Their hands resting so close together, but the two of them like oil and water, unable to mix. Not yet. 

But maybe that was why Kisumi hadn’t noticed before. It was easier to see what others didn’t, but not so easy to see what you yourself didn’t. 

Sometimes when he could wrangle Sousuke into hanging out, his eyes couldn’t get enough of Sousuke. Over and over his mind couldn’t help but be loud.

Did Rin ever notice the little ways Sousuke’s smile might change? The little uptick of his mouth, and the faint crinkle of his eyebrow differed from the crinkle of his brown and his little flash of teeth. Did Rin know that Sousuke usually hated foam on his drinks, and waited till it had all but disappeared before drinking? 

The way his finger pads had gotten rough? The way his towering height kind of made one feel tingly? The sea-glass blue of his eyes? The giddy way one might feel when he looked at you, turned your whole world into the ocean, till you needed to remember to breathe?

How silly, that Rin. Sousuke was so obvious. Rin this, Rin that. Rin’s going far, Rin’s become so different, Rin will be the biggest, brightest star on the international stage. Kisumi wasn’t reserved with his affections, he got it. Really. What others might find embarrassing to say, Kisumi enjoyed letting his loved ones know. He thought these things, too. Knew it deep down. But a sour twinge seemed to worm away at him. 

Sousuke’s not the only one who thinks so! Kisumi reasoned. That’s why. 

Then there were days Kisumi had to catch himself in the middle of a wish. His eyes would set on the the curve of Sousuke’s jaw and his mind would run away. A wish hidden in his mind, forced down by biting his tongue. Smiling around the words souring on his tongue. 

When the ocean rushed over him, Kisumi could understand why Sousuke and Rin loved the water. He could understand why Haruka said it was alive. Bobbing about like the only speck in an endless blue. Kisumi wondered if this was why whales, besides a breath of air, breached the surface. Touching the air, missing the water, and being welcomed in its waves once more. The way it rushed around you, until it took you into its world; Everything slow and weighted. 

Then Sousuke would blink and Kisumi would remember to breathe. Kisumi smiled, a tease on the tip of his bottom lip, waiting to be taken. And Sousuke always took even if he didn’t know it. 

The bravest Kisumi ever felt was in the smallest touches. Even with people he liked, Sousuke was strangely shy. He liked when others initiated touch. Kisumi could always count the seconds (7) it took Sousuke to reach out on his own, teasing and fond in his own way. Like new years fireworks, Kisumi poked and prodded, fit to bust in the way Sousuke’s fingers might knock into the back of his shoulder, nudging him with a pretend-gruff. The joking little knock-knock he’d always rapped on the top of Kisumi’s head. 

Kisumi still had to curl his toes when he thought about Sousuke pulling a piece of lint from his bangs to stop the shiver that was working its way up along his whole body. 

-

Some days Kisumi swallowed stale air and tasteless gum, chalking it up to feeling too much on Sousuke’s end. Rin so bright and always moving forward, not always realizing what he might have accidentally left behind in his running. 

(And that wasn’t fair, either, was it? Blaming Rin for wanting to learn and grow. Rin was brave, Rin was kind. He had his flaws, but Rin had a heart that Kisumi could almost say he envied. Rin deserved it for all his hard work. Rin hadn’t shared his first year back with him, and not quite so much with Sousuke either if he was inferring right. But it was okay. He’d wait. They’d tell him when they were ready. After all, he’d been there in Sano with them, too. He was just as much a childhood friend as the others. He was…)

Kisumi spent a week and then some after the last time he met up with Sousuke thinking too hard. 

It was strange how his teeth couldn’t keep the things that crept up on him at night inside these days. He couldn’t help replaying the way Sousuke’s eyes had gone dark. Rin again and again, even when he and Sousuke were out trying frozen yogurt together to celebrate the first cold day of fall like they used to do once upon a time ago. His mouth had moved before he could stop himself.

“Geez, Sousuke. Maybe you should have spent the day with Rin if you can’t remember my name so well.”

And how unfair had that been? He loved Rin, too. His precious friend who’d texted him funny pictures of his fat cat curled up in the sun just that morning. He’d wanted to eat his tongue the moment he’d said it. The lunch hadn’t gone that well after that. Sousuke too taciturn to continue, and Kisumi unable to take his words back with his heartbeat pounding away inside his head. 

He’d hit a nerve, he knew. Sousuke who was still trying to figure out his feelings for Rin, who still rung too loudly, too chaotically even as his face shuttered down at the mention of Haruka’s name. 

It was like being at the beginning of a bridge. Each step disappearing under his feet, unable to reach the middle where -

Kisumi wondered if he was stuck to a solid square. Backs and smiles whirling past him like ballroom dancers. The only person not moving as people clasped hands and dipped, weaving in and out like creatures slicing through water. Kisumi had always been loved by land.

In the end, Sousuke had met him after basketball practice. (A rare occasion with Regionals coming up. Sousuke should be training.) He’d dropped a bottle of strawberry milk into his lap. With a sideways duck, ears turned pink, Sousuke had scuffed his shoe. Kisumi saw the way his jaw moved, working around to find the right words.

“Don’t worry too much.” Kisumi broke the seal on the bottle with a turn. He didn’t look at the other, staring at the pink through the neck. “I wasn’t very nice. I’m sorry for saying that to you. I don’t want to be at odds.”

“Me, too, I’m sorry. I was wrong to behave like that. You’re my friend.” Sousuke hesitated. Seven seconds as always. Kisumi counted them like heartbeats. Sousuke dug his knuckle affectionately into the top of his head. “I miss getting lunch with you. Are you free?”

Kisumi smiled, queasy with the milk drink, with a million things. “You’re not the only one with competition coming up, you know? You’ll ruin my diet!”

Sousuke quirked his lips. “So work it back off. We’ll go running together.”

Rin’s name pushed at the corners of his mind. Another question to ruin the mood pushing at him. Just the two of us? He wanted to say. Just Kisumi and Sousuke? Was there something wrong that he wasn’t running with Rin?

“Well, when you put it that way. I can’t say no, now can I?” Kisumi held his hands together, willing his fingers still. “I’ll go change real quick. Hang tight.”

In the locker room, Kisumi pressed his face into the cool metal plates, and asked for a quiet mind.

Running with Sousuke felt like running on sand reflecting the sky. His legs worked overtime, along a blinding path. The sweat drenching his bangs, and the way his body ached that he could ignore the trees and branches growing in his chest. He was running with a rippling mirage, legs working to beat of his pulse and heart, striking sand and earth, for a view he couldn’t catch. That maybe he was never meant to.

In the quiet of the night, Kisumi dared to put a word to what he felt. The sound and shape forming like rising smoke bleeding out of him; a secret and a wish. Each a heavy anchor on his heart, an echo of distant lights gone before they were known. 

At the end of summer, Kisumi handed Sousuke the sticker that came with his strawberry milk bottle. The same one Sousuke had given him months ago. The little whale shark that was stuck inside the wrapper. He pressed it into Sousuke’s palm and let his shoes fill his vision.

“You know I really like you, right?” Kisumi wasn’t sure Sousuke could hear him over the rushing water pouring up around them. A glass tank filling to the brim; Kisumi didn’t know which side of it he might have been standing at.

Sousuke’s hand went tense. Kisumi counted, mouth going dry as it passed eight, nine, ten seconds. Sousuke’s hand squeezed around his before he could pull away.

“I know.” Sousuke let go and curled his fingers around the sticker. “Thank you.”

Kisumi nodded. “Well, uh. It’s my last day in Sano, you know! I’m moving to Tokyo for university. I’m making rounds. Gou-chan is next on my list. We won’t stop meeting up for lunch when I visit, will we?”

Sousuke reached out and pulled on his bangs. His face was kind when Kisumi could work up the courage to look at him. “Of course not. Take care, Kisumi, I’ll miss you.”

“You, too. Do your best to get better. Rin’s waiting, after all.”

Kisumi turned with a wave when Sousuke’s eyes widened. “Say hi to your mom for me!!”

Three hours till the sun rose, and two before he was set to go, Kisumi made his way to the beach. He crunched through the sand, each step like a new pathway, new and different, and all those behind him filling over with all the things he was shedding off. He knelt to the water and let the letter in his hand dip in. 

Kisumi laid the letter into the creeping waves. He watched the paper expand and break, lost in the water, and imagined his feelings doing the same. In the shelter of his knees, Kisumi whispered goodbye and watched the pieces floating out of view.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/188915751053/good-night-and-take-care-soukisu


	18. SouRin: First Kiss

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Hey Sousuke, what do you think about kisses?” Rin had said suddenly.

Sousuke had to pause, can of cola floating right before his mouth as he shot a side long glance at Rin. Rin fidgeted under Sousuke’s gaze but held a steady look with him. It was just like Rin to blurt out the first thing on his mind without a second thought. His cheeks were starting to color, and if Sousuke didn’t settle this Rin would start making him embarrassed, too. Sousuke set his cola can down and scratched his nose nervously.

“Uhm –“ He started. 

“Have you ever kissed anyone? Would you kiss me?” Rin said, a mile a minute, pushing himself into Sousuke’s personal space. “I saw this – _Gou_ _made me_ watch this show and, it was so stupid, Sousuke, they kept getting into fights because they wouldn’t talk to each other about how they felt. But then they were getting really heated about something and suddenly they just, you know pause, and, and – “

“…Kiss?” Sousuke croaked before clearing his throat.

“Yes!” Rin said. His eyes were shining, a determination that exhilarated and made Sousuke kind of fearful at the same time. It usually spelt trouble. “So it got me thinking. What will my first kiss be like?”

Sousuke coughed into his fist, “But what does that have to do with me?”

Rin let a toothy grin stretch across his face, making his eyes crinkle in mischievous amusement. Sousuke felt warm all over. He wanted to shove Rin just to get rid of all these feelings. Rin poked him in the cheek.

“I want you to be my first kiss! We’re best friends so what could be better, right?” Rin said. “I mean, you like me, and I like you, and that’s who you should always share a kiss with, right? Someone you like?”

He sounded confident like he had had it all figured out, but the blush was giving him away. His lower lip trembled a bit. Sousuke guessed he looked no better, wringing his fingers in the fabric of his shorts. Once Rin got a thought in his head he rarely ever let it go. (Exhibit A: Rin nagging Sousuke into joining the swim club, and where did that get him now? In the swim club.)

“Rin,” Sousuke said, uncertain and very, very sweaty. He vigorously rubbed his palms on his shorts but they still felt way too tingly. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t heard his mother teasing him about first kisses before. It wasn’t as if he hadn’t made a grossed out face at a movie where the girl and the boy kissed each other, and yet he still looked between his fingers and was only a little horrified but giddy when Rin’s face rose in his head without filter. “I don’t think –“

Rin deflated, “So, you don’t want to?”

Sousuke felt a pang his gut, his chest. He watched Rin turn away, a pout visible even from behind the shield of his fringes. He thought he saw Rin scrunch his nose up. 

“Hey, Rin, come on, don’t cry,” Sousuke tried. He reached out towards Rin, hand hovering.

“I’m not crying!” Rin shot back. His shoulders sagged. Sousuke sighed deeply, rubbing the back of his neck instead. It was always too difficult to deny Rin _anything_.

Even worse, the thought of kissing Rin definitely wasn’t one he found himself against in the least.

“I,” Sousuke started. “I’ll kiss you if you win a throwdown!”

Rin whirled around then, big grin back on his face. He jumped to his feet and readied his fist. Sousuke jumped up, too, running on autopilot.

“You’re on!” Rin exclaimed. “Ready?”

“Ready,” Sousuke said.

“Jan!”

“Ken!”

“Pon!”

Sousuke hadn’t even really thought about it, he just knew that Rin would probably play scissors first, and his body just moved on its own. Before his mind had even caught up, he had played paper. He stared down at their hands, then up at Rin’s face. The grin was still in place, and the blush was back full blast. Rin raised his eyes, looking giddy and shy and triumphant.

“I win,” He said, a bit breathless. “You really suck at this game, you know, Sousuke.”

“Shut up,” Sousuke muttered. “Well? Are we going to do this or not?”

Rin plopped down next to him, closer, turning at the waist to face Sousuke. Rin inhaled sharply, “Close your eyes, okay? That’s what they did in the show.”

Sousuke closed his eyes. “And don’t move!” Sousuke didn’t move.

He waited for what felt like an eternity, and then he felt a small pressure on his mouth. He could feel Rin’s hair tickle him, the soft push of his lips, and the bump of his nose before Rin was quickly backing off. Sousuke’s eyes flew open. Rin looked like he had short circuited.

“H-How was that, huh?” Rin asked, trying to sound challenging.

“I- I didn’t really feel anything,” Sousuke said. “Maybe, uh, we should try again?”

Rin smiled wobbly, and leaned forward again. The last thing Sousuke thought as he finally slid his eyes shut , trying to brand the image of Rin’s closed lashes and sweet blush was that he should let Rin win more often, if it meant sharing experiences like this. His hand crept across the small space of the stone step and fit between the spaces of Rin’s. With a smile, Rin curled his fingers and squeezed back.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/134691888608/sourin-first-kisses-inspired-by


	19. SouRin Week 2015 Day 1: Paper- Crossover

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SOURIN WEEK DAY 1: PAPER - CROSSOVER  
The prince of the fire nation makes friends with a earth kingdom boy. Avatar AU.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> why didn't i....put these in order. welp.
> 
> anyway, i never deleted day one of another time i participated in srweek and here it is---> https://archiveofourown.org/works/5905330

The sun burned unbearably overhead until Rin felt as though half of him was vaporizing away. His clothes were soaked, sticking to him uncomfortably as Rin tried to steady himself on his ostrich horse. Sweat dripped down from his hairline to the end of his nose then evaporated. He shook his head and wiped feebly again as his vision began to blur and turn sideways. He’d run out of water already, like he’d run away from Gou, from himself. He was too angry, too frustrated, too _everything. _His ostrich horse crowed unhappily but Rin egged it on just the same. When Rin reached to wipe his forehead again, he pitched forward and blacked out.

-

Rin remembered this field, remembered the tall grasses that parted easily before him like water as he and Gou ran through it laughing loudly without any cares. Their mother took them here frequently since it was so far away from everyone and from responsibility. Somewhere to his side, Gou called for a pause in their game as she bent to pluck up a few orange flowers she’d found. Rin called back to Gou as he spun in circles until he fell against the grass and rolled onto his stomach. His eyes searched for Gou to come to him but landed instead on a boy hiding behind a tree.

The boy stiffened, watching tensely as Rin sat up on his knees before bolting away. Rin was up on his feet in a flash, calling over his shoulder to Gou to not leave the fields until he returned. Rin hopped the roots of the trees and took off after the other boy.

“Wait, stop running, wait!” Rin called. “I promise I won’t hurt you! I won’t tell anyone!”

The boy kept running, occasionally glancing over his shoulder until he tripped, scrambling on his feet until he had to brace against a tree for balance. Rin dug down and bolted faster until he was snatching at air to grab the boy’s shirt. Just when Rin was about to grab him, the boy harshly swept his arm by him and they stumbled away from each other, backs hitting the trunks of parallel trees.

“I said stop!” Rin said. “I order you to stop!”

The boy did, but with an indignant look on his face. His face twisted into a grumpy frown, trying to appear more menacing than he was. He wasn’t much bigger than Rin, though, maybe just an inch or so, and his hair was dark. He wore earth kingdom clothes, slightly dirtied from play much like Rin. Rin scratched his nails against the bark as he tried to catch him breath.

“Who are you to order me around?” The boy said. “Just cuz you’re fire nation?”

Rin’s mouth twisted angrily. “Not just that! Because I’m – “ Rin bit his tongue.

His mother had warned them not to casually give out their status as prince and princess of the fire nation. Even if the world should know, should bow down, the places she brought them to be free from the constraints of the palace wouldn’t be kind if they knew who they were. Rin’s shoulders slumped.

“I’m…sorry,” Rin said instead. “I didn’t mean to scare you. Or order you around.”

Rin stuck his hand out, trying to smile at the other boy. “Come back to the field play with my sister and me.”

“Play with someone from the fire nation? Gross, no way,” the boy said.

“Gross? How dare you! Don’t you know I’m – “ Rin cursed himself again. He stepped closer to the other boy and stuck his hand more firmly towards him, determined to get him to accept him.

“Don’t be like that. I said I was sorry,” Rin said. The boy remained resolute, having crossed his arms. “Shake my hand, darn you!”

Rin lunged for his hand, bracing against the tree the other boy had been leaning against before kicking off and lunging again. The boy scrambled backwards and barely dodged Rin as he came barreling towards him. 

“I don’t want to shake your stupid hand! Go away!” He said.

The boy kept scrambling back every time Rin reached for him until he’d tripped over his feet and Rin had grabbed his hand to keep him from falling. Rin tugged at his hand, content when the other boy was safely back on his feet. He smugly held up their joined hands and made a show of rapidly shaking them until the boy was yelping for him to stop.

“I’m Rin,” Rin said. “Nice to meet you.”

He squeezed the boy’s hand too tightly just to see him wince and started to giggle. The boy squeezed him back tighter.

“I’m Sousuke,” He said. “Let go of my hand now.”

Rin almost reluctantly let go, stepping back a little to give Sousuke some room. Sousuke gave him a side-long glance as his face remained mostly blank. When Rin tilted his head in confusion, Sousuke fidgeted and finally looked away. He shifted his jaw into a lop-sided frown before he sighed dramatically.

“I guess I could play with you. There’s not really anyone else around to play with,” Sousuke grumbled. “But don’t blame me if you get muddy or dirty or whatever.”

Rin puffed his cheeks out, “I won’t! Let’s have a race, I bet I’ll kick your butt.”

Sousuke pointed somewhere in the forest, fixing Rin with a smug look.

“First one back to the field wins,” Sousuke said.

Rin snickered, adjusting Sousuke’s arm to point in the opposite direction. He hummed when Sousuke blushed and shoved him away. Rin rocked on the heels of his feet as Sousuke told him to stop smiling. It was only when Rin’s mother had come to collect him and Sousuke’s older brother was calling him in the distance did Sousuke admit he hadn’t realized that Rin was a boy.

-

Rin felt something cool slide across his face, wiping away sweat and dirt. He shifted into the coolness, whimpering when it went away. He could hear the faint sound of water and then the cloth returned. It sunk across his neck and his shoulders. Rin struggled to open his eyes, but whoever was treating him had taken to stroking his hair. They brushing his hair from root to end slowly, gently, and Rin relaxed into the touch. Rin finally drifted off when the hand cupped his cheek and stroked just beneath his eye.

-

Sousuke was an earthbender, Rin had come to learn. But it didn’t really do him any good when the fire nation had outlawed earthbending in Ba Sing Se. Only a year after his father’s death and his uncle’s rise to the throne in Rin’s place did the Impenetrable City fall. Rin, Gou, and his mother had been forced into the newly vacant palace of the earth king to “oversee” their new subjects. Most of the capital had stayed the same, but now there were fire nation flags everywhere and guards scaring the people left and right. Some nights Rin regretted turning a blind eye back then.

The field was the only place he and Gou could run free without constraint. Technically Sousuke had snuck in the first time he’d met Rin, and it was a secret both siblings were more than willing to keep. Rin had had to beg and bat his eyelashes at Sousuke until he had agreed to show him his earthbending. He had watched then in fascination as Sousuke dug his bare feet down into the dirt, jabbed a fist towards the ground and puffed his cheeks out until he was red in the face, and all that until a small rock had risen off the ground. A few seconds later, Sousuke let it fall back to the ground.

“I’m not very good,” Sousuke muttered. “That’s all I can do.”

“For _now_,” Rin said without thinking. “It was still really good! When you’re here with me and Gou you can practice all you want. We won’t tell.”

Sousuke looked uneasy, staring down at the rock. Rin bit his lip, kneeling down until his chin rested on his knees. Sousuke slowly sat down, too. Rin drew circles in the dirt with his finger.

“Don’t feel too bad, Sousuke. Gou’s actually much better than me at firebending. All the teachers think so. She’s really good. Me on the other hand…”

Sousuke looked at him then, smiling small. He bumped shoulders with Rin, drawing big squares around Rin’s circles in the dirt. “I guess we’ll have to learn together, huh?”

The smile he gave Sousuke was incredible. Rin grabbed onto Sousuke’s arm and jumped to his feet. He tugged him towards a shallow brook at the edge of the field. Sousuke stumbled right behind him, half running into Rin as he struggled to follow behind.

“Let’s get started then!”

-

Gou sat on a big rock most days, reminding Rin of his form and pose as he tried to imitate their lessons from the day. When he’d get too frustrated Gou would give him a quick example and urge him to try again. Rin collapsed against Sousuke in dramatic frustration, moaning about how hard Gou was working him and for Sousuke to carry him over to her. Sousuke grunted, struggling under Rin’s octopus arms and loud complaining until they both fell into the brook. Rin shrieked, trying to jump out before Sousuke was drawing him back in and laughing alongside Gou. They wrestled in the water for a bit before Rin finally dislodged himself from Sousuke and was running towards Gou.

“Stupid Sousuke, first one to reach Gou wins!!” Rin said.

A rock jumped up and wrapped around both of Rin’s ankles, effectively stopping him as he indignantly looked over his shoulder at Sousuke. Sousuke slowly rose out of the water and casually walked towards Gou, whistling a tune as he looked smugly over his shoulder at Rin.

“You think you’re so clever,” Rin huffed.

The rock released Rin and he stumbled forward before he tackled Sousuke against the rock.

-

A few months later, Rin and Gou were called back to the fire nation. Despite how thoroughly his uncle had tried to destroy the possibility, the Avatar had survived. Rin had only gotten a few minutes in the field to tell Sousuke goodbye. He had finally admitted to him who he and Gou were, though Sousuke had always suspected, and had told him through tears that they probably would never see each other again. Sousuke took up a rock and pressed it firmly between his hands until a green stone peeked through his fingers. He pressed it against Rin’s chest without looking at him.

“We’ll see each other again,” Sousuke said firmly. “You’re the romantic one. You should be the one telling me this.”

Rin sniffled, ready to cry all over again as he held the warm stone between his hands. Sousuke looked at him, trying to smile as he held a fist out towards Rin.

“We’ll always be friends, right?” Sousuke said.

Rin bumped him back. “Of course, Stupid Sousuke. When I’m Fire Lord, everything will be different. I’ll make you come visit me.”

Sousuke didn’t look so convinced, but he let their fists linger against each other a little longer before dropping it against his side.

“See you later, Rin,” Sousuke said.

“Later, Sousuke,” Rin said.

He put the stone on a necklace when he had the chance.

-

Rin woke up with a start, clothes only in linen pants under a thin blanket. His entire body was sore, but he was no longer wasting away. Rin sat up slowly, biting past the pain as he looked around the little wooden house and the tatty mat he was lying on. A jug of water was by his bedside and Rin greedily drunk from it. When he had drunk all the water, he messily wiped at his chin and struggled to sit up.

“So you’re awake,” someone said.

Rin froze, looking up too quickly until his head throbbed. Rin was sniffling before the tears had even fallen from his eyes. Sousuke knelt down before him, drawing the thin sheets over Rin’s shoulders and trying to nudge him back against the mat.

“Sousuke,” Rin said. “You idiot, what are you doing here? How did you find me? You can’t even find your way out a cloth sack.”

Sousuke rolled his eyes, sitting back when he realized Rin wasn’t going to budge. Rin rubbed his eyes on the sheets. Sousuke laid his cheek in his hand, as he waited for Rin to cry himself out. Some things hadn’t changed.

“Gou wrote me a letter,” He said. “Said you were going through some tough things and that you were hiding out in the earth kingdom. I was hoping we’d get to see each other but then you ran off. This is actually just a coincidence.”

Rin huffed, reaching for Sousuke’s hand. God, how he’d grown. “You know I don’t believe in stuff like that.”

Sousuke shrugged, briefly jostling Rin’s hand in his. “I promised Gou I’d return you to her. But…”

Rin smirked. “Hopeless as always.”

“Also,” Sousuke continued. “I want to help you. I’ll help you capture the Avatar, if that’s what you want.”

Rin huffed again, quieter now and pulled the sheets up around his shoulders until he ducked the lower half of his face in, too. He glanced at Sousuke who was looking at him intently from across the small space of the house. It was run down, now that Rin was getting a good look. Probably had been abandoned a long time ago. There were fire marks on some of the walls. Rin focused his gaze on Sousuke.

“Rin,” Sousuke pressed. “We’re friends aren’t we?”

“Are you saying friends help friends capture the Avatar?” Rin said, wryly.

“If I recall, your sister is also helping you with this stupid mission of yours. But yes, apparently they do,” Sousuke said dryly. “So how ‘bout it? Can I join Team Romantic Maniac?”

Rin held out a fist from beneath the sheets. “Only if you can keep up,” Rin said, a smile growing on his face.

Sousuke bumped back. “You won’t have to worry there, Rin,” Sousuke said. “I’m more than capable of keeping up with you.”

For the first time in a long while, Rin felt at ease, now that Sousuke was there to steady him.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/129036898533/sourin-week-day-1-paper-crossover


	20. SouRin Week 2015: Day 2: Aiko Desho

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SOURIN WEEK DAY 2: AIKO DESHO: RINGS  
Rin and Sousuke are still too young to marry, but they make due another way.

The Yamazaki Flower Shop sat squished between a laundromat and a secondhand furniture store in the downtown part of Sano. It always looked a bit out of place when you compared it to the old lady on the left who owned the laundromat sitting outside her store and dipping her cigarette ash into a floral ash tray Sousuke’s father had gifted her and set out for her on a stand by some large potted plants, and the large sign next door on the right perpetually blaring “20% off on couches!”. Still, there was always an outpouring of plants welcoming in would-be customers. There were rows of blue and violet flowers lining the two large windows at the front alongside some potted plants, and vined plants growing around it from the inside. Rin’s favorite always remained the patch of pink carnations meticulously kept in a rather ugly painted flower pot courtesy of three pairs of small hands (two Matsuokas and a Yamazaki to be precise). The door as always was kept almost permanently open with a faded brick.

Rin stuffed his hands into his pockets and went in. It was like stepping into a fairy tale each time. With Sousuke’s fathers care and his mother’s artistic eye, Rin might as well have been transported to a new place all together. The shop was bright and exploding with color, with a little fountain tucked away within a bunch of begonias. Off in a corner in a ratty old bed was Sousuke’s old dog, Sakura, that only blinked an eye at Rin, wagged her tail for a moment before settling back down for a nap. Rin chuckled. At the center of the shop were the counter and cash register, and the only thing that didn’t seem to mesh as well with everything else. Rin grinned cheekily as he watched Sousuke squirting some orchids with a spray bottle with the grumpiest resting face he’d ever seen.

“Careful Sousuke, that’s a spray bottle not a water gun,” Rin said, putting his elbows to the counter.

Sousuke flinched before he looked up and over at Rin. Rin’s stomach did flips as he watched the slow smile spread across Sousuke’s face. Maybe he had been wrong about Sousuke looking out of place.

“Rin,” Sousuke said. He always said Rin’s name like he was amazed or something. “You’re home sooner than I thought. Welcome back.”

Rin grinned, reaching over to stroke a petal on one of the orchids. Sousuke squirted Rin’s hand with the spray bottle.

“Hey!” Rin said, indignant.

Sousuke shrugged, “You know how my mom gets about me slacking off. I can’t have you interrupting me when I’m working.”

Rin rolled his eyes. He went around the counter to sit on it so he was next to Sousuke as he continued down the row and sprayed each orchid. Despite how he’d teased him, Sousuke was very gentle. When Sousuke stroked one of the petals of a bright blue orchid, he did it with the softest touch Rin had probably ever seen. He’d been on the receiving end of Sousuke’s big hands before, knew how strong his grip could be. It made Rin giddy.

“Your mom only gets mad at you for slacking because you’re lazy, Sou,” Rin said to fill up the space. “You used to go and fall asleep next to Sakura on her bed. Can’t imagine how you two fit on it now.”

Sousuke scoffed, and nearly sprayed Rin in the face instead. He put the bottle down and hopped up next to Rin on the counter. He sat close enough that their arms were pressed against each other and that Rin could smell the scent of fresh flowers coming off of him. Rin huffed contently.

“Sakura’s gotten grumpy in her old age. I tried to the other day and she kicked me in my face,” Sousuke said.

Rin laughed, “Can you blame her? You’re a giant! What part of you even fits on that bed?”

Sousuke shot him a mock-hurt look, and then said, “She used to like it. I’d lie in the bed then she’d lay down on me. We used to make it work.”

Rin elbowed him, ducking his head down as he laughed again. Off in the corner Sakura gave a big wheezing snore and turned in her bed. Rin shot Sousuke a teasing smile. “I don’t think she misses you.”

Sousuke shrugged then set a coy look on Rin. “Well, I can live with that. But what about you? Did you miss me?”

Rin’s face burned bright and he nearly bit into his tongue as he shoved at Sousuke’s bulk, barely moving him, as Sousuke pressed more against him. Rin had a million threats on his tongue, each one falling over the other and turning into a garbled mess as Sousuke pressed his forehead to Rin’s and smiled serenely. Rin huffed and closed his eyes.

“You’re an idiot,” Rin said, annoyed but not mean. “Of course I missed you. It’s a bit weird living with someone else in the dorms. I keep having to remind myself that I don’t have to drag you out of bed in the mornings.”

Rin bumped noses with Sousuke. “Must be hard for you without me to get you out of bed in the morning, huh?”

Sousuke shrugged again, “Not really. Sakura keeps me company. At least with her, she’s all for sleeping in.”

He snickered at Rin’s annoyed expression. He reluctantly separated from Rin as he hopped off the counter. He held a hand out for Rin and held it as he hopped off, too. He tugged him along to the back of the shop. He squeezed Rin’s hand and looked over his shoulder at him with a shy smile.

“I wanna show you something,” Sousuke said. “I’ve kind of been working on it for a while for when you came back, so I want your opinion.”

He gently pushed Rin into an old chair, stepping over Sakura easily as she shuffled from her bed to lie down on top of Rin’s feet. Rin glanced over at a vining plant trying to take over a small broken off fence hastily settled into the back of the shop. Its flowers were bright blue and pink with a few splashes of purple partially closed up.

Sousuke fumbled for a moment. Rin could see the tips of his ears going red as he looked down at the thing in his hands and then back at Rin. Rin looked down at the ring of flowers in Sousuke’s hands and felt his heartrate jump. The flowers formed a simply circle, big enough to fit around one’s head (Rin’s head, since the thought hadn’t escaped him). There were bell shaped blues, bright round pinks and purples like the small vine next to him, what Rin recognized as forgetmenots, and white camellias, Gou’s favorite. Sousuke stepped closer, fingering the petals with a shy downward look.

“I think you and I are too young for rings right now,” Sousuke said. “Neither of us have any money anyway. But I thought – _hoped_ – that this would suffice for now. I had dad help me.”

Sousuke looked up in a panic when he heard Rin sniffle, already rubbing at his eyes with the back of his hand. Sakura cracked an eye open but didn’t budge from her spot on Rin’s feet. Even she had grown used to Rin’s crying over the years. Sousuke smiled lopsidedly in a bit of relief when Rin motioned for him to hand it over. He let Rin take hold but didn’t let go.

“You know I don’t know much about flowers, and you already know what my favorite one is,” Rin said, voice a tad bit watery. “So you’ll have to tell me what they mean.”

Sousuke didn’t seem to want to stop smiling. He pointed to the blue one first.

“These are bluebells, they mean gratitude,” Sousuke said. He pointed to the white camellias. “Gou’s favorite, the white camellias, mean waiting. Forgetmenots mean true love.”

Sousuke put the crown on Rin’s head. “The last ones, morning glories, they mean willful promises.”

If Rin wasn’t threatening to cry before he was definitely crying now. He grabbed a fist full of Sousuke’s apron and his tight fitting polo underneath and dragged him close enough to bury his face into Sousuke’s chest. Sousuke held the back of his head and stroked at the hair on his nape.

“A-Asshole!” Rin said. “You always do this! Catch me off guard and s-stuff. Who gave you the right?”

“You did, apparently,” Sousuke said, snickering. “I take it you like it?”

“I love it,” Rin said, nodding into Sousuke’s chest. He tilted his head back and looked up at him. “I love _you_.”

“I love you, too,” Sousuke said quietly.

Rin dug a fist into Sousuke’s side and sat back with a huff. He wiped at his eyes again before the morning glories on the fence caught his attention. He waved a hand at Sousuke then took a hold of one of his hands. Rin was careful when he wrapped a vine around Sousuke’s pinky finger and then around one of his. Sousuke shook his head and then leaned down to press their foreheads together again. Somewhere below them Sakura thumped her tail against the floor and the both of them smiled wider.

“I think this will more than suffice for now,” Rin said, eyes crinkling.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/129368071353/sourin-week-day-2-aiko-desho-rings


	21. SouRin Week 2016 - Day 2: Aiko Desho: When We Were Kids

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SOURIN WEEK - DAY TWO - AIKO DESHO: WHEN WE WERE KIDS…  
Rin makes friends with a witch’s son named Sousuke.

Rin’s mother had warned him about the forest and not to go deep in there. Only play at the outskirts but never journey in, she had said. There were things, people that shouldn’t be meddled with. But really, she’d also told him all sorts of magical stories, so how could he resist?

He may have been a crybaby but above all else, Rin was adventurous. So while Gou had gone to a friend’s house for the day, Rin had taken off to explore the forest as any He’d be back before his mother would really miss him, he just wanted a peek. She’d think he was just out running along the beach waiting for Gou to come home. No harm in that.

Rin had stood outside of it from the roadside for a little while looking in. It was relatively quiet, with just the faint chirping of birds. Nothing looked out of the ordinary, as far as Rin could tell. One black bird seemed to stare at him with bright blue eyes as Rin stared back. It tilted its head towards the forest. Rin raised a hand as if to wave before the bird was flying off.

“Hey, wait!” Rin called and chased after it.

The bird glided between the branches, landing a few times as Rin chased behind it. When they came close to a clearing, the bird landed on the branch of a fallen log and gave Rin a side-long glance. It looked towards the clearing and squawked. Rin crept close, surprised when it didn’t even budge. He held his hand up and bird did little more than ruffle its feathers and look more insistently towards the clearing.

Rin peeked in.

Sitting with his head between his knees was a little boy no older than Rin. He was about eight, Rin figured. His shoulders shook a little and Rin fretted that maybe he was crying. Rin glanced at the bird and it tilted its head towards the boy again. Rin crept close, bending down on his knees as he reached out to the other boy.

“H-Hey,” Rin called. “Are you okay? Are you lost?”

The boy’s head snapped up, eyes red and cheeks ruddy, but otherwise his face was dry of tears. He blinked at Rin, almost like he couldn’t believe Rin was real. Rin stared back unsure of what else he should say.

“What are you doing here?” The boy said hurriedly. “How did you even get in?”

Rin tilted his head. “What do you mean ‘get in’?” Rin said.

The boy jumped to his feet, pointing out at the forest as he fixed Rin with a hard gaze. Rin startled; the boy was barely that much taller than him, and wearing a weird robe over his t-shirt and shorts. Around his neck was a strange symbol on a chain.

“Humans shouldn’t be able to come in here. There’s a block at the threshold,” The boy said.

Rin furrowed his brows. “What threshold? There was nothing but dirt and trees.”

The boy shook his head. He crowded up against Rin, eyeing him critically. He tugged at the long fringes of Rin’s hair and the collar of his shirt. He frowned deeper when he found nothing out of the ordinary.

“You’re just a regular human right?” The boy mumbled.

“Of course I am! Just like you. Why are you out in the forest like this? Where’s your mommy?” Rin said.

The boy looked away sheepishly, the tips of his ears red. He scratched the back of his neck.

“So, you are lost?” Rin said.

“No!” The boy cried, indignant. “I just – I just took a wrong turn is all! I can get home just fine. Haru ditched me after I yelled at him.”

“Haru?” Rin said.

The bird behind him squawked gliding in to land on Sousuke shoulder. Sousuke looked at the bird peevishly, motioning to shrug it off but it held onto his robe insistently with its claws. It’s blue eyes almost seemed to stare at him in amusement.

“This,” The boy said with barely concealed indignation. “Is Haru. My mom gave him to me. He’s my familiar.”

“Familiar,” Rin repeated. He didn’t know what that meant. “Then what’s your name? I’m Rin.”

“Rin,” The boy repeated, forming his name slow and soft. “I’m Sousuke. I live in this forest.”

“And you got lost?” Rin replied too quickly. 

“Haru left me here!” Sousuke tried to defend. “He was supposed to lead me home. Instead he kept trying to bathe in the stream and wouldn’t leave it. Then he flew off and brought you here.”

Rin hummed, rocking on his feet. He looked around the clearing; it was quiet and calm. It was a good place to play if he was being serious. It was well lit, lots of places for a little boy to climb and to race around in. He looked back at Sousuke and smiled.

“Are you the only kid here?” Rin asked. Sousuke nodded. “Then, let’s be friends! Let’s walk to your home together.”

Sousuke hesitated and regarded Haru. He ruffled his feathers, apparently a yes as Sousuke nodded to him. Haru flapped his wings and took off to a nearby branch.

Rin took Sousuke by his hand without thinking, not unlike how he’d do with Gou and looked between Haru and Sousuke. Sousuke didn’t wriggle his hand free but he seemed startled.

“This way neither of us will stray, right?” Rin said. “Show me your home!”

Haru cried out once and then flew off. Rin took off running, Sousuke stumbling after. They laughed, hands binding tighter and straight for the cottage Sousuke called home.

It wasn’t until Rin was leaving later, Haru perched on his shoulder and a “charm” around his neck that Sousuke’s mother leaned forward to whisper a secret to him. She and Sousuke were witches. She smiled secretly and told him to come back whenever. She glanced at Sousuke and ruffled Rin’s hair.

-

Rin stood outside the forest for a bit, having learned its multiple paths by heart now. Haru looked at him from his usual perch at the entrance to the forest, head titled. Rin didn’t hesitate as he walked into the forest, a hop in his step as he spotted tiny red ribbons tied along young saplings the more he went in. Sousuke had said that he’d put them up for Rin, so he’d never get lost. But really, Rin knew better. Even for as long as Sousuke had lived in this forest, he still couldn’t even navigate it to save his life. Rin supposed that it was why Sousuke’s mother had gifted him Haru in the first place. Someone needed to keep vigil over him. For a witch’s son, Sousuke was dreadfully bad with navigation.

Haru swooped down the further in Rin got, tilting his head a little when she thought Rin may be headed the wrong way. A few minutes later and Rin reached a little old cottage at the heart of the forest. Rin could see the tops of an old shrine peeking out from behind. Rin crept up the front porch stairs and put his hands on his hips as he looked down at his friend.

Sousuke lay in the swinging seat his mother had apparently installed a few days ago after she’d seen it in a catalogue in a konbini in town. She’d bought the thing then with a wave of her wand it had sprung up. Rin’s eyes still boggled whenever he saw her in action. Sousuke was dozing, head pillowed on the side of his old dog who only peeked his eye up at Rin before drifting back off.

Rin nudged Sousuke with his foot. When all Sousuke did was frown in his sleep and turn over, Rin huffed and climbed into the seat and laid dramatically across Sousuke.

“Sousuke,” Rin whined. “Sooousuke.”

Sousuke grunted, trying to nudge Rin off. Rin pressed his nose into Sousuke neck and kept nudging him, wriggling around until Sousuke’s old dog got fed up and jumped off to sleep in a patch of sun at the other side of the porch. The seat wobbled, going a little faster but Sousuke refused to budge. He was probably the laziest eight year old Rin had ever met. Sousuke shifted trying to escape Rin until Rin had simply squirmed his way between Sousuke and the back of the seat. He pressed his nose against Sousuke’s.

“Sousuke Yamazaki,” Rin said peevishly. “I come all this way to see you and you don’t even get up to greet me!”

“Because you never let me sleep,” Sousuke grumbled. He yawned, “Five more minutes.”

Rin shoved at his shoulders, trying to rouse Sousuke. If he annoyed him enough sometimes Sousuke would simply relent to Rin’s wishes. He complained a lot but really did enjoy Rin’s ideas, sometimes he just needed prompting. For a kid that was learning magic and living out in a forest, Sousuke wasn’t very adventurous. Rin shoved again.

Sousuke’s arms shot out and pulled Rin flush against him. He tucked Rin’s head under his chin, trying his arms between their chests. Sousuke closed his legs around Rin’s so he couldn’t move. Rin blushed, heart hammering in his chest. Sousuke’s hand stroked the back of his hair gently. He shifted a little so that Rin could lay down a little better and Sousuke’s arm wasn’t completely falling asleep.

“Five more minutes,” Sousuke repeated. “Then we’ll do whatever you want.”

Rin huffed, closing his eyes in defeat. Sousuke felt so warm in the encroaching fall chill. He could feel Sousuke’s pulse against the back of his knuckles. He managed to release his arms from where they were trapped so he could lazily drape them over Sousuke’s shoulders.

“Just five minutes,” Rin reminded. “I mean it.”

“I promise, I promise,” Sousuke said, yawning. Rin snuggled his face into Sousuke’s chest, content with his answer. Sousuke was good with promises, anyway. He had nothing to worry about.

-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/138638745963/sourin-week-day-two-aiko-desho-when-we-were


	22. SouRin Week 2016: Day 3: Aiko Desho: Red String of Fate

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SOURIN WEEK - DAY 3 - AIKO DESHO: RED STRING OF FATE  
Sousuke’s mom makes Rin a potion to find his soul mate.

Sousuke pointed to the ruby red vial as Rin leaned against his shoulder trying to get a better view of Mrs. Yamazaki’s potions shelf. Rin’s eyes widened. The vial seemed to sparkle, barely bigger than Mrs. Yamazaki’s index finger and yet even Rin could sense the magic in it.

“It’s supposedly for helping someone find their soulmate,” Sousuke said, shrugging. “You drink it and for a few days it makes you and your soulmate have a kind of magnetic pull so you can find each other.”

“That’s so romantic,” Rin whispered.

He elbowed Sousuke when he wrinkled his nose in distaste. Sousuke shifted away from Rin, peeking into his mother’s cauldron. It was still a bit messy from her last potion. But his mother had always hated cleaning the thing anyway. Rin kept staring at the vial, twisting his hands into the fabric of his shorts.

“Aren’t you curious at all? Your soulmate could be anywhere. Right in Sano or halfway across the world,” Rin said. “What if they marry someone who’s not you?”

Sousuke shrugged again; “Then I’d either be alone or find someone else to spend my life with.”

He shot Rin a funny look but said nothing. Rin scoffed, shoving his hands into his pockets indignantly. Sousuke was about as romantic as a rock – but then Rin might argue even the rock had more romance in it than Sousuke did.

“You’re no fun. I’d love to know who I’m destined to be with,” Rin said. “Is it a hard potion to make?”

“Not at all!” Mrs. Yamazaki chirped, sweeping into the room. Makoto and Haru were perched on either of her shoulders as she dropped her bag to the floor, and reached out to ruffle both Rin and Sousuke’s hair.

Makoto and Haru flew from her shoulders and landed on the long wooden perch Mrs. Yamazaki had had made for them at the window. Haru pressed himself tight against Makoto. Rin sighed, a little dreamy, a little crestfallen. Mrs. Yamazaki regarded him with a secret smile.

“That’s a very big sigh, Rin. Aren’t you too young to be so heart sick?” Mrs. Yamazaki said.

“No way! My mom said she and dad knew each other when they were kids. It wasn’t until high school that they realized that they were meant for each other,” Rin said, proudly. “She said there’s a red string of fate that connects them, even if he’s gone now.”

Rin to his credit didn’t tear up when he said it, though Sousuke felt himself hover as if to reach out on reflex to comfort his friend. His mother looked briefly at the space between them, considering. She regarded Rin again.

“I see, I see. So, you want to speed the process up a bit, huh? Why wait all those years when you can find out right now, correct?” Mrs. Yamazaki prompted.

“Rin -” Sousuke said, trying to cut in. He was drowned out by Rin’s enthusiastic, “That’s right!”

Mrs. Yamazaki chuckled. “Well, I can’t ignore such earnest feelings. I’ll help you out, then. A quick potion shouldn’t be too much trouble.”

Sousuke pouted at his mother, though she obviously ignored it. She bumped him with her hip as she tied up her hair. She took her wand out from her dress pocket and looked around the room. Mrs. Yamazaki poised her wand up before sweeping it sharply in the air. A wind blew threw, forcing a recipe book open to the page desired. Glass bottles and vials began to fly, swaying in the air as Mrs. Yamazaki looked between them.

Rin’s eyes widened, creeping along and looking up at the floating bottles. With a flick of her wrist, the bottles began to descend. A green liquid, some strange ash, pink petals, and what looked like bark. Makoto stood a little straighter on his perch, nudging Haru who didn’t budge at all. A big wooden spoon danced up, diving into the cauldron and began to stir. Mrs. Yamazaki nodded at Sousuke who begrugingly went up to Rin.

“I need a strand of your hair,” Sousuke said. “Do you mind?”

Rin habitually touched the back of his head, petting his own hair. He shook his head, making to pluck out one himself before Sousuke’s hands were covering his own. He looked at him seriously, blue eyes boring into Rin’s for a moment. He bent his head over Rin’s shoulder, hair tickling Rin’s ear. He stroked at the back of Rin’s head, feeling at his locks. Rin almost didn’t even feel the pluck as Sousuke pulled back, one maroon strand in hand. He looked at it a bit funny before he went to the cauldron and dropped it in.

“That personalizes it,” Sousuke explained. “Love potions and stuff need to be personal. Or else it’ll cause trouble.”

Rin nodded, standing next to Sousuke. Mrs. Yamazaki motioned for all the vials and bottles to return to their respective places as she came to stand before the cauldron. She grabbed the wooden spoon and began to stir herself.

“Despite how much we make, only a little is actually usable,” Mrs Yamazaki said. “We’re going to let it sit for about an hour and then it’s all yours. Give it a day to fully kick in and you and your soulmate should be feeling as if you need to be somewhere!” She winked.

Beside Rin, Sousuke was glaring at the broad side of the cauldron, quiet. There was nothing left to say, he figured. So long as Rin still wanted to come by, then he didn’t care if Rin ever got his soulmate or not. He just hoped he’d always keep visiting.

Mrs. Yamazaki took a vial from her other pocket, uncorking it with her thumb. She raised the spoon and carefully poured it in, only a drop falling to her thumb. She recorked it and shook it a bit, content with how the color was swirling into a vibrant red. She showed it to Rin.

“Good to go!” Mrs. Yamazaki said. “So how about lunch? I thought we’d good with our hands this time! I’m sure I’ll get it this time.”

“You burn toast, mom,” Sousuke said, jokingly. She playfully flicked him on his cheek.

“You’re not good at magic but you can cook with the best of them,” Mrs. Yamazaki said with a sigh. “It can’t be helped. You’re still young, anyway.”

She put Rin’s potion up on the shelf and ushered them into the kitchen. Rin glanced over his shoulder at it, hoping the hour would go quickly.

-

Rin held the vial between both hands when he finished washing up for bed. He sat up on the edge of the bed just staring at it, considering. More than anything he wanted to know. It couldn’t harm anything to just find them. He glanced up at his bedroom door, hearing no one coming, and then downed it in one gulp. He scrunched up his face; it was too sweet. He hated sweet things. But the after taste was pleasant enough. Rin wasn’t sure if there supposed to be something grand or even a spark to say that it had worked, but he didn’t feel any different. He waited a few more minutes and still nothing.

Sighing, he resigned himself to bed. Tomorrow would bring results, he hoped.

-

Still nothing out of the ordinary. Rin walked with his mother around Sano, holding her hand and Gou’s as they ran errands. He looked at the people passing, mostly kids he encountered near his age. Yet other than a brief glance Rin felt no pull towards them. Heck, he felt no pull at all.

Gou looked at him quizzically, not understanding why he was fidgety today. He looked at her sheepishly but said nothing. She didn’t need to know about the love potion thing. He hadn’t even told her about Sousuke, and he normally told her almost anything.

It continued like that for the rest of the day, no soulmate to be found. In the days he didn’t visit Sousuke, so fixated on finding out if his soulmate would appear, Rin grew fretful. Maybe he didn’t even have one? Maybe there were so far away that the magnetic pull just wasn’t even registering? Three days after taking the potion, Rin fought back the urge to tear up and buried his face into his pillow.

He’d see Sousuke tomorrow. That always brightening things up. Sousuke’s dumb grumpy face, and lazy self, and stupid dares were what Rin needed. He reached under his pillow to the charm that Sousuke’s mother had given him the day he’d met his best friend and held onto it. He fell asleep more content that he’d been the last few days.

-

“Maybe my soul mate’s really far away, like Canada or Argentina,” Rin said, thoughtfully. “Maybe that’s why I can’t feel them. What do you think?”

Sousuke was quiet a moment before he finally spoke. “I think soul mates are dumb. There’s no such thing as destiny, is there?”

Rin shoved him in the shoulder. “Shut up, stupid! My mom says its real, so it is. Destiny doesn’t even matter, just the fact that there’s someone out there that’s perfect for you in the right ways!”

Sousuke furrowed his brows, giving up on shoving back. He rubbed the back of his neck as he saw Rin’s face scrunch up in indignation. If he pushed Rin any harder he’d start to cry and that’s the last thing Sousuke wanted. He was a sucker for Rin’s tears every time.

“I didn’t mean to insult your parents, Rin,” Sousuke said. “Just, I got kind of scared, okay? What if you find them and forget about me? I really like being your friend.”

Rin looked at him, confused. “Who says that I’d forget you?”

“Well, you’d want to devote all your time to your soul mate, right? They’re the one most perfect for you. So what do you need me around for?” Sousuke muttered.

Rin really did shove him this time, knocking him back as he fell over on him. The tears had gathered in the corners of his eyes anyway, despite Sousuke’s hesitation. Sousuke froze, trapped between the ground and Rin’s crying face.

“I would never do that, stupid, stupid Sousuke!” Rin said, beating a fist against Sousuke’s chest. “You’re my best friend. No one will ever get in the way of that. Aside from mom, and Gou, you’re definitely who I think of first!”

Sousuke flushed, looking away at the ground. Rin thumped his chest again, rattling him a bit. Sousuke reached up and petted at Rin’s hair, trying to hush him from crying anymore. Rin sniffled loudly, still muttering that he was stupid.

“Actually,” Sousuke mumbled. “There’s one more thing. Mom suggested it before we left the house when she heard the potion didn’t work.”

Sousuke fished around in his pocket and pulled out a red piece of yarn. He gently pushed Rin back a little, and took one of his hands. He secured one end of the yarn to Rin’s pinky. He put the little pile into Rin’s hand and motioned at him with his own pinky.

“She says there’s a lot of different types of soul mates. So, until the one you really want comes along, will you be fine with having me?” Sousuke said, blushing harder.

Rin searched Sousuke’s face, clenching and unclenching the yarn before diving down and hugging Sousuke tightly. Sousuke yelped and squirmed but Rin didn’t budge. The collar of Sousuke’s shirt got wet. When Rin pulled back he hurriedly tied the string to Sousuke’s pinky and held up his own.

“I’ll be more than fine,” Rin said, his laugh a bit watery. “If I never find them, then I’ll just spend the rest of my life with you! There’s nothing better than that.”

Sousuke smiled sheepishly. “Yeah, I think so, too.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So


	23. SouRin Week 2016 - Day 4 - Paper: Cyberpunk

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SouRin Week - Day Four - Paper: Cyberpunk
> 
> Psycho Pass AU. New Inspector Matsuoka is more than Sousuke bargained for. [Sousuke’s Side]

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> an oldie for an old sourin week. every now and again i get kind of weird and just wanna.......delete all the things i made. so uhhh here we go againSouRin Week - Day Four - Paper: Cyberpunk
> 
> COMPANION FIC OF: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5910151

“Shit,” Yamazaki Sousuke cursed under his breath.

He stood at the intersection of the hallways and looked down each, finding nothing familiar in the stark white halls. Mikoshiba had nagged them all earlier in the week that a new Inspector would be joining their division, and he expected everyone to be there in time to do introductions. Sousuke looked at his watch. He was already late for clocking in. His holo-device sat heavy on his wrist and he briefly considered contacting Inspector Tachibana Makoto.

Sousuke closed his eyes and randomly took a hallway. Three or four more turns, and a dead-end finally brought him to Division One’s office. He could hear Inspector Mikoshiba’s loud voice already introducing the rookie. Sousuke scrubbed a hand over his face, taking a good ruffle of his own hair and walked in.

“Did you get lost again, Yamazaki?” Nanase said, it wasn’t a question.

Sousuke narrowed his eyes at Nanase wishing he could wipe the soft, smirk on his face off. He shouldered his way in and dropped down into his office chair. He deliberately bumped against Nanase on his way there.

“Shut it, Nanase,” Sousuke muttered.

Mikoshiba shook his head and continued on with introducing the Enforcers. He moved from Nanase Haruka, to Sousuke himself. Sousuke eyed the new girl. She was short, taller than Nagisa at least, but definitely much smaller than the five men in Division One, with her short red-hair tied back into a simple, little ponytail. Her blue standard Inspector’s suit made her seem even smaller. Sousuke squinted, imagining he’d seen pointed teeth hidden behind her soft, pink lips. Sousuke looked away.

“The late-comer is Yamazaki Sousuke,” Mikoshiba said. “Who should know how to get to Division one’s office by now.”

Sousuke rolled his eyes with a quiet grumble, ignoring the disapproving look Makoto was sending him. Mikoshiba moved on to Hazuki Nagisa before he was pushing the poor girl into her own desk chair. Sousuke looked over his shoulder to see her trying to log into the laptop, before swiveling back and ignoring the piercing look Nanase was digging into the side of his face.

-

Sousuke yawned, taking a glance at his watch. It was a quarter past twelve and Nanase and Makoto had left about twenty minutes earlier. He imagined they’d gone to buy lunch and cozy off in some corner. He had never really understood their whole relationship well, but he imagined when you’ve known someone your entire life, such things become trivial. Sousuke himself had had only one friend growing up. He imagined he and Kisumi would probably never be anywhere as weirdly telepathic as Nanase and Makoto. Makoto had personally delivered the hand-written message Kisumi frequently sent that Sousuke more often than not forgot to reply to. It sat in his room on his desk. 

From the corner of his eye he saw the girl, Matsuoka, rise from her desk and decided he would follow her lead and head to the cafeteria. He figured he’d wing it like this morning now that he’d accidentally made Nagisa upset during the week and he’d refuse to direct Sousuke around. He shoved his hands into his pockets and shouldered out of the office.

Matsuoka’s shoes clattered on the tiles as she sped up to match his stride. Sousuke didn’t look at her.

“Could you show me where the cafeteria is? I think it would be a good chance to get to know each other a little better.” Matsuoka asked. He could see her smile from the corner of his eye.

Sousuke cursed under his breath. Great. She was a talker. Sousuke’s mouth downturned and he started to rub the back of his neck absently. Maybe if he didn’t answer she’d give up and he could mindlessly wander to the cafeteria in peace. She made a face, puffed her cheeks a bit, and opened her mouth to keep talking. Sousuke inwardly cringed.

“How long have you worked in the Criminal Investigation Department?” She said.

Sousuke screwed his mouth further shut. She didn’t need to know that. They weren’t friends. He couldn’t understand what her wanting to know his back-story was for. He was only supposed to obey orders when necessary, anything extra was asking for trouble. What was the point in her acting like they were even on the same level.

Matsuoka took another breath, and Sousuke braced for more invasive questions.

“Were you ever an Inspector?” Matsuoka asked.

To that, Sousuke had to pause, easy glare sliding to her as he regarded her question with a feeling of rising disgust in the pit of his stomach. “No,” Sousuke muttered, and sped up hoping that his curt response was the end of their interaction. She’d definitely be deterred now.

“Wait! I’m sorry! I was just curious,” Matsuoka said, catching up to him.

Sousuke felt his teeth begin to grind against each other, as she tried to get his attention. If she wanted it, then she’d have it. Sousuke slowed down until she was forced to match his pace. He looked towards her and kept his stare level and hard. Sousuke clenched and unclenched his fist. They stopped walking.

“You shouldn’t bother yourself with us. We’re just your hunting dogs. There’s no need to risk clouding your Psycho Pass by interacting with us,” Sousuke said, voice hard.

Matsuoka’s eyes searched his face as she digested his words. Sousuke towered over her, but somehow when she stood straighter she became a presence of her own.

“Don’t give yourself that much credit, Yamazaki-san. Something like this is hardly enough to change my hue,” Matsuoka said, a smirk appearing on her face to Sousuke’s confusion. She continued, easily, “Now, I’m hungry. Where’s the cafeteria?”

Sousuke blanched, and looked around them in utter confusion. He’d always hated how stark and white the MWPSB headquarters was. Sousuke swore to himself before he finally addressed Matsuoka after she’d said his name again. Sousuke willed away the growing embarrassment.

“I have no idea where we are,” He said with a sigh.

He could feel Matsuoka’s gaze burning into him. Moments passed between them quietly and tensely before Matsuoka finally cracked. Her nervous laughter made Sousuke do a double take. She slapped him on his arm.

“Funny joke, Yamazaki,” Matsuoka said. “But could you please show me where it is now? I’m getting hungrier.”

Sousuke almost bit his tongue. He swallowed a bit and looked away.

“I,” Sousuke started. “I really don’t know where we are.”

A few more seconds ticked by between them before Matsuoka was crowding her way into Sousuke’s space. He backed up without really thinking. As small as she was, she was obviously built under that lying uniform because she was able to shove at Sousuke and forced him back a little more. 

“You live here! How do you not know where we are?!” Matsuoka cried. “I can’t believe this shit! I should have asked Mikoshiba-san to give me a tour. But instead I’m stuck here with you.”

She made to shove him again before Sousuke finally caught her by the hands. He pulled at her, making her step falter as she inhaled and looked between their joined hands and his face. Sousuke’s big hands dwarfed hers, his thumbs curling in to stroke at her palms. Her hands curled slightly into his. Sousuke caught her eye and didn’t let it go. She inhaled again and exhaled a little noisily until her shoulders began to sag and the tension seemed to finally dissipate between them.

She was reactive; a horrible trait to have for such a high-stress job. The last thing this girl needed to be was this explosive when things didn’t go her way. She had told him not to worry about her hue, and here she was probably spiking it as they spoke. It would happen with him alone with her, of course it would. That’s what he did, he clouded people. Sousuke exhaled through his nose to keep calm, like Makoto had taught him. He tightened his grip as she blinked at him.

“You’ll never survive as an Inspector this way if you can’t control yourself. Your Psycho Pass will cloud and you’ll become like me. You don’t want that, do you?” Sousuke said.

He released her hands and put distance between them. He raised his wrist to motion to the holo as he regarded her. “I’ll call someone to help us out,” Sousuke told her.

Sousuke turned his back to her and dialed for Mikoshiba. On the second ring he picked up, loud voice as always as he said Sousuke’s name, face probably stuffed. Sousuke rubbed his temple as he tried to talk over Mikoshiba.

“**So, what’s the problem, Yamazaki?”** Mikoshiba said.

“Mikoshiba-san, Matsuoka and I are lost. I got us lost. Can you come find us,” Sousuke said, trying not to grouse.

Sousuke cringed when Mikoshiba laughed over the line, loud and obnoxious as always. Sousuke glared at the holo until Mikoshiba was quieting and he could hear the scrape of a chair.

“**Now don’t you two move, I’m coming to get you. Anything look familiar? No? Well, I doubt it’d make much different to you, Yamazaki,” **Mikoshiba said. **“Don’t you go making Matsuoka-kun’s day any worse, ya hear?”**

“Just hurry up,” Sousuke muttered. “Please.”

He hung up and took a chance to glance at Matsuoka. She was leaning back against the wall, staring at her hands like she it was the first time she’d ever seen them. He looked away again and laid his forehead to the wall. Neither of them spoke. Sousuke was grateful for it as he tried to sort his thoughts.

Matsuoka’s hands had been soft. She had probably never even held a Dominator before, had done no hard labor. She was still a fresh academy kid, probably just two or three his junior, and untouched by society’s worst. She shouldn’t have become an Inspector, not when she probably had a hundred other things to choose from if she had even qualified. Sousuke breathed through his nose and closed his eyes.

“Matsuoka-kun! Yamazaki!” Mikoshiba yelled from the down the hall. He waved a hand and jogged up to them.

Mikoshiba put his hands on his hips and regarded them both, big, dopey grin never leaving his face. The corners of his mouth went sly when he landed on Sousuke. Sousuke bit back his snark.

“Just follow me, Matsuoka-kun, I’ll show you the way,” Mikoshiba said. “Then, you can help Yamazaki. He needs all the help he can get.”

Mikoshiba turned on his heel and they silently followed a tiny ways away from Matsuoka and Mikoshiba. Sousuke shoved his hands into his pockets and huffed.

“I would have found it eventually,” He muttered. It was a lie but even Sousuke had pride.

-

Sousuke had loved to swim since he was little. He hadn’t actually grown in the city, so he’d spent countless hours walking along the beach with his grandfather, learning to blow bubbles, float, and kick. He joined the local swim club, raced all through elementary and middle school, with nothing but the love for water all around him. Sousuke wished at times he could stay submerged for hours, and feel nothing but water and peace and the urge for the rush of competition.

When it came time to enter high school, he’d been accepted to Tokitsu in Tokyo, central hub for the Sibyl System. His parents had been worried; they knew that Sibyl kept them safe and their society in order. But he could see the underlying fear in their eyes that in the end trouble still arose in the most perfect of environments. Sousuke had kissed them each as he held onto his acceptance letter. It was a shot to train to swim for the National team, and some da, represent Japan in the Olympics. He told them that nothing would ever happen to him.

Sousuke had packed his bags, hugged his parents, and took that long train ride into Tokyo. His acceptance letter warm in his pocket.

At the train station, he met another Tokitsu first year boy, Shigino Kisumi who was thinking of joining Tokitsu’s less popular basketball team. They put in a request to room together when they reached.

-

Nagisa was still mad, Sousuke could feel it. Sousuke wasn’t the nicest guy, and Nagisa wasn’t as wonderful and cute and angelic as he presented himself to be (as an Enforcer, that was obvious wasn’t it?). But dropping his cakes, and telling him to deal with it while he was still groggy and cranky from being forced out of bed to catch a latent criminal had made Sousuke less of a morning gem than normal.

Nagisa had looked at him and sworn revenge. Sousuke had thought nothing of it until Matsuoka had appeared at his desk and told him to get up to eat lunch. He still couldn’t believe the audacity of Mikoshiba, forcing them to eat together like two school buddies. She’s smiled at him, nothing about the reality of their job having obviously sunk in yet. Sousuke could only stare, close his eyes and then sigh as he realized she wasn’t going to take no for answer.

It was just what their division needed: more hard-headed people.

Sousuke got up and went on ahead, uncaring if she was going to catch up or not. He’d have gladly gotten lost again if it meant he wouldn’t be around Matsuoka and get that nasty, fidgety feeling over. Why she was so intent on talking to him he couldn’t figure out. He supposed she needed noise to fill silence. He was the wrong guy for that, then.

Matsuoka caught up, hands folded behind her back as they walked a while. When she made to turn, Sousuke glanced and turned with her. She nudged at him and he reluctantly looked down.

“So, Sou-chan, what are you getting for lunch?” She said.

Sousuke’s brain and body froze the minute “Sou-chan” left her mouth. The back of his throat felt dry, as he snapped his gaze towards her. A smile was rising on her face the longer the silence stretched.

“Where – Who –“ Sousuke babbled. Then everything sped up and Sousuke was narrowing his eyes at her, growling, “Nagisa”.

Matsuoka’s laughter caught Sousuke off guard. It bubbled up from her until she had to double over and clutch her stomach, eyes a little wet at the corners when she looked back at him. Sousuke’s cheeks burned when she made to grab at him to steady herself. Sousuke stepped back, huffing to look to the side. If he touched her, he knew he’d feel worse somehow. Worse how, he couldn’t figure.

“Oh my god, holy shit,” Matsuoka said. “I can’t believe someone like you has such a cute nickname!”

She snickered a bit more before she straightened up and regarded him. Sousuke scowled at her for good measure. She turned towards another hallway.

“Now, come on or the best food will sell out,” She said over her shoulder, walking off. She grinned again when she looked back at Sousuke’s harder scowl. “Keep up, Sou-chan. You don’t want to get lost again!”

“Troublesome woman,” Sousuke muttered to himself. He walked after her.

-

The greatest high Sousuke had ever felt was placing number one in his third year of high school. He’d plowed through the competition easily. His butterfly was in top condition. His arms had risen from the water, propelling him forward like a jet stream. When he’d hit the wall and began his dissent back all competitors seemed to fall away. All that was before him was the bright expanse to the finish. His hands hit the wall and Kisumi’s cheer erupted over everyone else’s before he was throwing aside his goggles and staring at that scoreboard.

**1: Yamazaki**

He’d been swarmed by scouts the moment he’d come from the pool. They flocked to him, handing him his towel, shoving pamphlets in his face as he pried off his swim cap. This was it, Sousuke knew. Kisumi was all but falling out of the stands the way his blue eyes had sparkled, the way he had been so proud of his friend. He mouthed something like “Olympics”. Sousuke smiled back.

This was it. He was going. This was part of Sibyl’s exam, and he’d passed it with flying colors. Nothing was better than this, nothing could compare. Nothing mattered. Sousuke had gotten his dream on his first shot. Before he could even breathe a word to the scouts, Sousuke had gone straight to Kisumi and let him gather him in an awkward hug. Sousuke had had to grab him before he’d fallen out, hand ruffling his soft pink hair. When he was able to push Kisumi back into his seat, he gladly accepted the phone his friend immediately held out to him. Sousuke dialed back home to his parents.

“I’m going to make it,” He’d said. “Look out for me. I’m making it.”

-

Six months later during his first year in university, Sousuke broke down. And he’d taken Kisumi down with him.

-

Sousuke was kicking back a cup of coffee when the alarm began to blare. He looked over to Matsuoka knowing she was the only other person in the cafeteria that morning with him. He’d watched her looking startled with a piece of food still hanging mid-air as she jerked up at the alarm. It was only her fourth day on the force. An uneasy feeling began to pool into his gut.

Sousuke took one last drink before he abruptly stood up.

“Let’s go,” he said, gruffly. He walked off, hearing her hurried steps following behind him. A restlessness was settling between his shoulder blades.

-

Sousuke laid his head back against the walls of the paddy wagon. Beside him Nanase was also quiet, fiddling quietly with a loose thread on his pants. Nagisa was swinging his legs freely, but was otherwise silent.

It was a routine case. A simple one if he thought about it. A guy whose coefficient had spiked over 100 and gotten caught with a street scanner. They were only meant to bring him back and get his ass treated. Simple.

His holo beeped with the update. Sousuke glanced at it, a scowl settling on his face. The man’s coefficient had jumped to 200 following an assault on a man. He was being backed into a corner now. Nagisa and Nanase had looked down too but no one had said anything. Nanase fiddled with the thread a little more.

The atmosphere wasn’t tense, but he could feel that the others had uneasiness about them, too. It was what it was. Sousuke took a sidelong glance at Nanase.

“Just rip the damn thing off already,” Sousuke said.

Nanase sent a withering glare at him and a soft elbow into his side. “Bite me, Yamazaki,” He said.

From the corner of his vision Nagisa cracked a smile and giggled quietly. Sousuke closed his eyes again, feeling a little better. Still, he couldn’t help shaking his leg when he felt the paddy wagon begin to slow.

-

His shoulder was busted. That’s the only thought that kept playing through Sousuke’s mind. Over and over again, his mind had nothing to say but that. He looked numbly at the doctor who was reading off his file, sorting through some pamphlets and shaking his head. Sousuke could faintly hear his own breathing. All voices seemed to fall away. His shoulder was busted. Kisumi rose from his seat to reach out to Sousuke. His shoulder was busted. He drew his hand back.

The doctor handed some papers to Kisumi and they were left alone in the room. The click of the door closing was loud. Sousuke buried his head into his knees and cried.

-

Months had passed and nothing was better Mobility was limited and Sousuke couldn’t craw his way out.

The room was dark. Sousuke laid under his sheets clutching his right shoulder as he tried to remember how to breathe. Kisumi had come in earlier before going somewhere and leaving a tray of food and drinks for Sousuke. Alongside his pain medication was something else the doctor had prescribed that Sousuke refused to touch.

Sousuke screwed his eyes shut, breath picking up speed as he dug his fingers into his scalp. The sheet was light but it felt too clingy, too stifling. He couldn’t bear to kick it off though. Sousuke dug the fingers of his other hand into his shoulder, scraping at the skin until it flared with dull pain.

He needed to wake up. He couldn’t just stay here sleeping like this. He had a dream to fulfill. He repeated it to himself. He’d wake up and do his arm exercises. Then he’d sit with Kisumi and chat over breakfast, hear about his little brother learning to swim. They walk to school together. Kisumi would slap his back and tell him to knock everyone dead in the water.

His shoulder was busted.

Sousuke’s breathing spiked, his hands tingling.

The sheets were ripped off and something blurry and pink entered Sousuke’s field of vision. Hands flew towards him, taking hold of him and trying to get him to sit up. Sousuke fought, trying to press himself deeper down into the bed. Kisumi fought him harder, forced him up and took a hold of his face.

“Sousuke, you need to calm down,” Kisumi said. His voiced sounded watery. Sousuke looked at him blindly.

His shoulder.

Kisumi shook him a little, trying to desperately wipe the tears on his face away before new ones sprung again. He slapped a hand over Sousuke’s mouth and tried to yell something again. Sousuke inhaled deeply. The room was too dark, Kisumi’s hands too much, his head pounding, the smell of the salt of his tears, the faint siren in the distance. Sousuke wanted it to stop. Kisumi’s grip relaxed and then Sousuke was bolting out of the door.

He fainted heard Kisumi yelling and the sound of feet hitting pavement.

Who knows when but he’d been tackled to the ground, cheek digging in concrete as someone was pressing his hands behind his back. Kisumi was screaming and Sousuke’s shoulder was erupting horribly. A jolt made Sousuke freeze before he was blacking out.

He’d woken up in a rehab center a little later. They’d said Kisumi was in the room next door. A few months later, Kisumi was released, a good dose of meds on him. Sousuke had stayed.

-

Tachibana Makoto had appeared to him months later, looking awkward in his CID suit and holding out a hand to him.

“Yamazaki Sousuke,” Makoto had said. “We want you to be an Enforcer for Division One. We think you have what we need.”

Sousuke had slapped his hand away and gruffly agreed.

-

When the doors to the paddy wagon opened, Sousuke could already spot Matsuoka’s small frame next to Makoto’s. She was looking at him worriedly, though he wondered how aware of her own expression she was. He followed after Nanase and Nagisa. He was already opening up the carrier drone, faint steam rising as a panel rose to reveal their Dominators. He caught Matsuoka’s eye before turning away. Nanase took the middle one from the left, as always, and Nagisa took the far right. Sousuke took his own as he watched Tachibana, Mikoshiba and Matsuoka approach to take their own from the other carrier drone.

He looked at her, the focused look on her face as Sibyl’s voice probably filtered in. It was her first time after all. He fell into step with Nanase and waited for further instruction.

Mikoshiba pointed towards each of them, jabbing his finger in different directions. He nodded towards Sousuke as he regarded Matsuoka.

“I’ll take Hazuki with me. You get to go with Yamazaki. I want you two to learn to work together. Can you do that?” Mikoshiba said.

There was no laughter in his voice. Matsuoka almost looked surprised. He couldn’t fault her for that. She had seen Mikoshiba cheerful and at ease before now. Matsuoka stuttered out an affirmation as she saluted and came to Sousuke’s side. Sousuke took one look at her and then made his way to the street Mikoshiba had ordered to them.

Sousuke kept his head forward, glancing at the corners of his eyes as they silently made their way down the alley. He could hear Matsuoka’s soft footsteps and what seemed like a gasp for a brief moment. Something rattled faintly. Sousuke stepped back hurriedly and took Matsuoka by her arm, pulling her into an adjacent alleyway. He shook his head when she made to speak. He pointed straight before them

A faint figure was sliding into the old factory they’d been passing by. She tensed under his grip, her small fingers holding the Dominator harder until her knuckles were turning white. Sousuke kept his grip on her a little longer before he finally rose up and began to make his way into the building. Matsuoka kept at his heels. 

Sousuke only hesitated a moment before he addressed Matsuoka again.

“If you find him, shoot. Don’t hesitate. Understand?” Sousuke said, keeping his voice low. He bent his head until he was staring right into her eyes.

She inhaled sharply, “Yes. I – I understand,” She said.

Sousuke nodded. He hoped she did. He watched her go, Dominator poised before he finally moved away himself. Sousuke pressed the Dominator to his forehead once and then descended into the dark of the factory.

He heard nothing but the drip of old pipes and the faint creak of his shoes as he moved. Once in a while the wind would rattle the broken windows but Sousuke felt no presence from the man. He cursed under his breath realizing he’d probably sent Matsuoka alone in his direction and turned on his heels.

He saw the glow of Matsuoka’s Dominator in the distance knowing she’d probably unlocked it. He gritted his teeth and hoped she had taken his words to heart, no hesitation. Seconds ticked by and no sound seemed to follow the glow. Sousuke gunned it forward.

The sound of old crates and broken chairs hitting the ground made Sousuke whirl. He slowed, trying to strain his ears to find the sound, Dominator poised. He looked out again, trying to find the glow of Matsuoka’s glow. Something collided straight into Sousuke and he was toppled heavily backwards. His Dominator flew from his hand. The man kicked back until the Dominator was sliding far out of Sousuke’s vision. Sousuke’s head cracked to the ground, as wild hands took hold of his shirt collar. Sousuke pushed against the man, managing to dislodge him as he staggered backwards and trying to regain his bearings. The room spun a bit, and the man backed off, watching. He lunged, and Sousuke parried, only barely fending him off. The man came for him again, as Sousuke fell through a gathering of boxes. The man leapt and a barrage of fists met Sousuke’s face.

The sound of cracking flooded Sousuke’s ears as he felt his nose crack. He held his arms up to try and block him. He caught Matsuoka behind him, and mouthed “Shoot” at her. He pushed at the man’s shoulders, trying to hit back. He managed to block, jamming the corner of his palm into the man’s jaw. He punched again with his other fist. The man spat blood as Sousuke’s drew his leg back and rammed his foot into the man’s chest. Sousuke scrambled away as Matsuoka’s Dominator flared up and a blue beam shot straight at the target.

His body grew bigger, bigger until his features had marred beyond recognition and he was exploding in a shower of organs and blood. Sousuke only barely shielded his face as the blood splattered. When Sousuke moved his forearm away, he saw Matsuoka falling to her knees and the Dominator clatter to the ground. Sousuke was on his feet before he could even think of it.

His hands hovered over her shoulders before he steeled himself and took a hold of them. He shook her.

“Matsuoka,” Sousuke said. No response. “Matsuoka.”

She mumbled something before a desperate sobbed racked through body and she was lurching forward. Sousuke’s finger filed through her hair, moving her bangs from her face as she stared blindly out at nothing. Her sobs were getting louder as her tears poured.

“Rin,” Sousuke said. “Rin, look at me. It’s okay. Look. You saved me.”

Rin blinked rapidly, trying to make sense of all that was around her. She looked at him, eyes seeming to focus. Sousuke released a breath he didn’t know he was holding. Sousuke didn’t let his hand fall away from her face. She breathed deeply.

““I-I’m sorry, I couldn’t shoot him earlier. You wouldn’t have gotten hurt if I had just shot him when I should have,” She babbled.

Sousuke grunted. “Stop blaming yourself. Your hue is getting really cloudy so just breathe. You saved me,” he said. He kept their eyes locked, making sure she was hearing, understanding what he was saying.

“When we get back to HQ, we can talk all you want. As an Inspector, you need to take care of your hue. Despite how tough this job is,” Sousuke said.

She rubbed at her eyes for a while before nodding. Then Sousuke’s hand finally fell away. He could hear Makoto and Mikoshiba on his holo but didn’t pay any mind. They’d find them. Nanase was also mumbling something. All he could see was Matsuoka. 

“Right, sorry - I wouldn’t mind talking, though,” She said trying to smile.

He merely nodded at her and stood up. Sousuke took Matsuoka by her hand and brought her to her feet. He pulled her against him and shielded her view from the body. He raised his holo up and dialed back for Mikoshiba.

-

Three days into being an Enforcer, Kisumi stopped by, and the world seemed to stop. Kisumi was carrying his brother, Hayato, and standing by Makoto who had looked at him almost sheepishly.

“It’s not the end, Sousuke,” Kisumi had said. “Keep moving forward.”

Sousuke hadn’t known what to say. But Kisumi’s smile had been like it’d always been before the breakdown. He nodded mutely. Kisumi ruffled his hair.

“I’ll keep in touch, you know,” Kisumi said. “I’ll talk to your folks. You’re a stubborn guy, so I know you’ll be fine.”

Sousuke wanted to argue how much he hated where he was, and what this position made him. But in the face of Kisumi’s words, he only breathed an agreement. He would hate his job, but he’d never go back into that horrible place again. He’d keep on because he owed Kisumi that much at least.

-

Sousuke had taken it upon himself to speak for Matsuoka when they returned to HQ. He glanced at her through the whole thing, keeping an eye on how she stood, and how she responded when Makoto would gently touch her arm and whisper something. She’d still have to do the paperwork, but that was for later. When Mikoshiba had dismissed them all for the day, only Sousuke and Matsuoka were left in the office. He waited for her to look back to him and affirm that she still wanted to come with him before he was leaving the office, just a little slower with his head turned as Matsuoka followed.

The trip to his apartment was quiet. She seemed surprised by how minimal he kept his place, stark and almost empty. He didn’t see the point to dolling it up. He had never wanted to be an enforcer anyway, and there wasn’t much else he could do about that. That’s what Sibyl had decided for him. He went to the kitchen as Matsuoka sat herself at the couch. He’d made tea the way his mother had taught him, pouring it gingerly into a cup. He watched her from the kitchen before going out to sit down opposite of her on the couch. He held out the cup and she took it.

They sat quietly for a while until she found her voice again.

“Do you,” She started. “Do you ever get used to that? Uhm, killing I mean,” She said. She took a sip.

Sousuke scoffed quietly. “You didn’t kill anyone. You only carried out Sibyl’s judgment,” He said. He watched her digesting his words before looking at the space between their feet on the floor.

“You’ll cloud your hue if you think that way. Then you’ll become like me,” He said.

“It’s weird. I was sure it had spiked really high earlier,” She said, a frown on her pretty face. She looked at her holo, checking her hue. She held up the cup as she forced a laugh. “Must be your tea or something.”

Sousuke shook his head, settling back against the arm of the couch. She looked puzzled a moment.

“No, it was dropping back at the factory. I checked you myself when you weren’t looking,” Sousuke chuckled despite himself. “You’re really something else, Matsuoka.”

He couldn’t help the small smile that was rising on his face. He didn’t look up, knowing she was looking at him intently.

“Well, everyone has always said my hue bounces back pretty quickly,” Matsuoka said, apparently returning to usual self. Good, he had sort of missed that. He didn’t dare tell her, though.

Another beat of silence fell between them before she spoke again. “You called me Rin,” She said.

Sousuke’s eyes flew up to her, widening when he’d finally realized it. He had. He groaned, feeling the tips of his ears burning. He looked away from her, knowing that terrible sense of humor of hers was about to come back full blast.

“I did no such thing,” He said, firmly. “And even if I did, it was because you weren’t responding.”

Matsuoka waved a hand.

“Its fine! We’re working together, so don’t you think we should be more familiar, too?” Matsuoka said. “Wouldn’t you agree, Sousuke?”

Sousuke blanched.

“Or would you prefer, Sou-chan?” She added.

Sousuke could barely muster a true glare at her as she looked so triumphant and full of life again. He’d endure the embarrassment if it meant she’d be herself again.

“I will kick you out, don’t think otherwise,” Sousuke muttered.

When Matsuoka’s grin grew larger, all Sousuke could do was cover his face to try and hide the obvious blush rising up from his neck and spreading all over his face.

“Sousuke is fine. Just Sousuke,” He finally said.

Matsuoka drank down some of her tea, humming into the cup as Sousuke tried his best not to look at her.

“So,” She started again. “You’ll call me ‘Rin’, right?”

Sousuke looked at her, then and shook his head. “No. I’m an Enforcer and you’re an Inspector. You’re my handler. Getting familiar isn’t necessary. You calling me by my name is already too much,” Sousuke said. “I’m your dog. There’s a reason my codename is Hound 1.”

Matsuoka’s mug slammed down on the table, and Sousuke winced.

“Even dogs have names, Sousuke!” Matsuoka said. “I’d like to call you by yours.”

Matsuoka looked at him peevishly, leveling Sousuke with a hard glare. Sousuke hesitated before finally relenting. Divison One was full of stubborn people, and Matsuoka probably was at the helm of it all. Sousuke was too tired to argue.

“Shit, you’re stubborn. Fine, Rin,” Sousuke said, sighing. “Just – don’t be upset if your hue clouds up because of me.” He couldn’t look at her.

He caught sight of her hand moving into the space on the couch between them as she scooted a little closer, maybe even shyly.

“I have a feeling that won’t happen,” She said, and smiled at him.

Sousuke could almost believe her. He watched Rin take a hold of her cup again and resume drinking it. Later when she’d grilled him about his past, and admitted her own motivations, her father, his legacy, and everything under the sun, Rin had collapsed into his bed and turned on her side to face him.

“Sousuke,” She said, sleepily. “Hold my hand a bit while I fall asleep.”

“You’re a grown woman, you shouldn’t be holding hands like this,” Sousuke said, finding that he was actually joking.

He heavily rose from his seat on the couch and sat on the edge of the bed. Rin took a hold of his index and middle fingers in her hand and snuggled under the sheets. She muttered something about his hand being warm and fell asleep quickly. Sousuke brushed her hand from her face.

“What a troublesome woman,” Sousuke sighed. “I can’t say I don’t look forward to working with you, though.”

Later, Rin would awaken to Sousuke asleep with his back against the bed on the floor, fingers still in Rin’s grip. She only let go when he began to stir.

-

A month later and Rin was as insufferable as she had been when she’d first arrived. This time, Sousuke had only a bit of snark and a wry grin in response. Nanase would look at him critically in this strange all-knowing way as he dug his hand into Makoto’s pockets, complaining earlier of cold hands. When Sousuke cowed down to Rin, he caught Nanase’s faint smirk and promptly looked away.

Makoto had commented once that his Psycho Pass had gone down to his surprise. Not by a large margin but it had been better. He didn’t bother to tell Rin. She’d make a big deal out of it for nothing.

The morning of a Saturday, a slow day with nothing but paperwork met Sousuke and Rin in a care headed out into the country. They stopped where the road met a dirt path up to a little hill and a tree towering over it. Sousuke unbuckled his belt as Rin reached back to grab the bouquet from the rear seat.

“Rin,” Sousuke aid. “What are we doing here?”

She only smiled secretly and tugged on his sleeve to follow her up the path. She slipped once but Sousuke kept a hand hovering at her back as they continued up. She gave one flower to Sousuke and held the rest against her chest.

“Rin,” Sousuke said again, fingering the flower uncertainly. “You didn’t answer my question.

Rin turned to him, smiling a little softly, a little hesitantly. “I want you to meet my father.”

Sousuke held the flower tighter and watched her kneel to place the flowers on his grave. Sousuke knelt with her and brushed his fingers against the engraving of his name.

“Hey, Matsuoka-san,” Sousuke started. “I’m Rin’s partner, Sousuke.”


	24. SouRin Week 2016: Day 7: Coffee Shop

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> SOURIN WEEK - DAY 7 - AIKO DESHO: COFFEE SHOP  
Years later, Rin and Sousuke meet at a coffee shop. All it takes is a sleepy morning and a name and Rin falls in love all over again.

It was nearly 6 am, when Rin had decided that he’d go for a jog. After finally spending the whole night half way unpacking things into his new, little Tokyo apartment, Rin was intent on exploring as much oft the city as possible. That was until university started up and all that free time would melt away. He’d gotten up early to go jogging since there was a park not too far from where he lived, that sat at the heart of a row of shops. The coffee shop at the corner is what caught Rin’s eyes when he’d looked up to wipe away a layer of sweat. Taking a drink of his water, Rin made a mental note of where it was when he was properly showered and presentable. Rin ran around the park twice more before heading home.

Rin jammed his hands into his pockets, retracing his steps. He noted the bench, the second one with the engraved initials at the center with a scraggly looking heart around it. The little fountain in the tiny little “hideaway” met the corner of Rin’s eye before he looked over and spotted the hanging sign of the coffee shop. It simply said “Coffeehouse”. Rin checked his watch, 7:20. A coffee now and then wouldn’t hurt his diet, he figured.

It wasn’t as packed as Rin was expecting, but there were enough people for Rin to crane his neck down the line. He mentally tried to calculate how much time he had to get to the front. He looked up at the menu, silently mouthing the options to himself. Floating around the menu were foamy looking sea-creatures. His eyes skimmed but kept coming back to “Shark’s Bait”, a cafe latte topped with a foam shaped shark at the center. Rin’s brows raised; almost every one of them had some sea-creature topping guaranteed. Though, the Shark’s Bait seemed to have the strongest kicker by far.

Rin was still staring up at the menu when he approached the cash register. A deep voice made Rin blink back to earth.

“What can I get you?” He said.

“A, uh, Shark’s Bait?” Rin said. “One of those steak sandwiches, too, if you don’t mind.”

Rin looked over to him in time to see the barista turn his broad back to him, uniform straining around thick arms, as he handed a cup to a coworker who went down a little ways to call for a lady. Rin heard him mumble to his co-worker to hand him a pre-made steak sandwich from the refrigerated display case. Rin looked down and reached for his wallet. From the corner of his eyes, he could see when the barista was standing back at the register. He punched in the prices.

“Noted. What name do I put down, sir?” The barista said.

“Put ‘Rin’,” Rin said. He looked up. “It’s a - ”

The barista was still looking down, writing out Rin’s name on his cup. Rin’s words died in his throat. Even from this angle there was no way he’d forget him. They’d been apart for over 10 years, but Rin would never forget. He stared at the straight line of the barista’s nose and the now strong jaw and cheeks devoid of baby fat. His hairstyle had stayed almost the same, though he had shaved the back into an almost undercut. The barista looked up, familiar, droopy teal eyes meeting Rin’s.

“It’s,” The barista began, words almost dying on his tongue. “_Rin_.”

Rin breathed out his name, “Sousuke.”

Time almost stopped, ticking by as Sousuke looked Rin over too obviously. Rin’s coffee cup hovered uselessly between them. Somewhere to the side, Sousuke’s coworker cleared his throat. Sousuke snapped out of it. He printed out Rin’s receipt and wrapped it around his sandwich as he handed it to him. Sousuke handed the cup to his coworker.

“I – uh – we’ll call you when its ready, R – _Sir_,” Sousuke said.

Rin blinked, remembering where he was. He side-stepped muttering a faint “right”, as he tried to find himself a seat where he could ogle Sousuke clearly from. A few minutes later, Sousuke’s coworker was calling Rin’s name, a sneaky smile on his face. Rin didn’t meet his eye. Instead he tried to glance over at Sousuke, nodding and handing off orders to customers.

“By the way,” Sousuke’s coworker said. “Yamazaki is the only one right now who knows how to do that latte art thing.”

He tapped the top of the counter slyly before going to fill another order. Rin glanced up to see Sousuke turn briefly away from a customer in line and set about making the latte art. He stared down it with such concentration that Rin forgot why he was even standing. Sousuke pulled back, looking over the coffee critically, almost displeased. His coworker slapped him on the back, telling him had done good. Rin snickered; Sousuke had always been a bit of a perfectionist, even if he had teased Rin about it back then. Rin almost reluctantly returned to his seat.

Rin looked down at his coffee. Swimming on the top of his coffee was a twisting shark, almost completely encompassing it, almost eating what looked like his name in English. Rin’s eyes boggled. Holy shit, Sousuke was _good_.

A quick visit suddenly became a waiting game. For a good two to three hours, Rin either sat alone or occasionally shared his table with a passing stranger. He had finished his sandwich a long time ago, but he only had eyes for one person. Sousuke would glance over from time to time, checking that Rin was still there. He almost seemed surprised each time he met Rin’s eyes. Rin sheepishly waved a bit each time.

It hit midday before Rin had even realized it. Sousuke took one more glimpse at Rin before he was resting a hand to his coworker’s shoulder and heading through the side door somewhere. A short girl hurried through the doors a few moments later, pulling her apron on over her head as she headed through an “Employees Only” door. Rin held his breath. The door opened a bit, stayed like that a few moments, and then Sousuke came out. His hair was tousled, probably from when he he’d pulled his uniform shirt off and switched to a simple black t-shirt under an opened blue button down.

Rin stood up quickly. Sousuke stopped a few steps away.

“My shift just ended today. I, uh, got a short one today, since I have afternoon classes when the semester starts up,” Sousuke explained, as if he had to.

Rin nodded hurriedly. “I – I see.”

They stood awkwardly for a few moments. Rin mechanically pointed to the outside of the shop.

“Do you want to go for a walk?” Rin said, voice a bit high.

Sousuke nodded. They filed out even more awkwardly. From behind Sousuke’s coworker yelled good luck. Sousuke hurried along a little faster, cursing under his breath. They fell into step once they hit the park’s trail. Rin felt a lump in his throat as he tried to figure out what to say. Sousuke was quiet as he’d always been. But now the silence felt tense, strange for them.

“It’s been a while,” Rin started lamely. “T-Ten years, right?”

Sousuke nodded mutely again. “About that, yeah. We should both be 22, right?”

Rin nodded this time. “I just moved to Tokyo actually. I’ve been back and forth between Iwatobi and Australia actually. Uh, Gou told me you’d already been here since high school.”

“That’s right. There was a school that specialized in swimming that scouted me, so I made the move. Haven’t left since,” Sousuke said.

He said it simply but Rin could feel a straight weight at the heart of it. He didn’t push just yet. Rin kicked a pebble in his path, trying to reorganize him thoughts again.

“So you haven’t been back to Sano at all?”

Sousuke shook his head.

“I came back in my second year of high school. I transferred to Samezuka. Then for the first year of uni I was in Australia. I’m back, though, I’ve got a shot at the National team,” Rin rambled.

Sousuke nodded again, biting into his lip. He always did when he was just about to hold back something from Rin. Rin’s throat tightened.

“I’ve really missed you, Sou,” Rin said, choking a little on a small sob. Sousuke stopped. Rin saw his shoulders sag.

“I’ve really missed you, too,” Sousuke mumbled.

He held his arms out wide, looking way too serious with a bright blush on his cheeks. Rin didn’t think too hard and dove right in for a hug. Sousuke grunted when they collided but held Rin close. Rin buried his face into Sousuke’s chest, inhaling coffee grounds and vanilla. Rin pulled back a little but didn’t separate from Sousuke. 

“When does your semester start?” Rin asked.

“In about two weeks time,” Sousuke replied, arms sliding away from Rin’s body. Rin let his hands drop, trying not to keep them latched on his friend. He was suddenly so clingy…

“Same, then. We’ll, uh, meet up until then? What other day are you off?” Rin said, biting into his lip.

Sousuke nodded, shoving his hands into his pockets. “It’s a deal, then. Did you get to look at any of the other shops around here?” Rin shook his head. “Well, then let’s go take a look.”

Sousuke looked pointedly at Rin until he had gotten the clue that he should start walking first. Rin huffed, bumping shoulders with Sousuke as he flashed him a teasing grin. 10 years had barely made much of a difference, it seemed. Small parts of Sousuke were intent on staying the same.

“Don’t tell me you’ve still got that pesky lack of directional skill, Sou,” Rin said.

Sousuke scowled, looking straight head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

-

Rin shifted on his feet outside of the coffee shop, spying Sousuke through the window. Rin had already memorized his schedule after getting Sousuke to spill to him. He worked Monday to Friday, usually from the morning to the noon, except on Thursdays and Fridays where he worked till five. He had taken the job sometime in high school, though Rin couldn’t imagine how if Sousuke was swimming competitively all these years. He’d certainly have no time between training, the swim team, and school. But maybe Sousuke had figured all that out?

Sousuke seemed to be so taciturn about what he’d been doing in high school, and what he was majoring in. Rin figured they had time for him to press Sousuke.

Rin glanced up at him again through the window, wondering if he was intruding by coming back two days in a row. He checked his watch. Sousuke was due to come off shift, soon. Rin had spent the better part of the day running around the park with his eye on the coffee shop, then unpacking his boxes, then getting to frustrated and putting them back. Then looking off and on at the clock until he was sure Sousuke’s shift would end soon. He was a few minutes too early.

Through the window Sousuke’s coworker tapped him on the shoulder and gestured to Rin. Sousuke looked over, catching Rin’s eye as he smiled and nodded at him. Rin awkwardly waved back. Sousuke’s coworker said something, and before he knew it, Sousuke was being ushered out as he slipped the apron over his head. He gave Rin a thumbs up when Sousuke’s back was turned. Rin pretended not to notice as he pressed his back to the shop’s glass window, waiting.

“Hey, Rin, did you wait long?” Sousuke asked.

“No, not long. I actually just got here,” Rin said. It was only half a lie. “Where to now? There’s this sports shop I’ve been wanting to head to. I need new goggles and I want your opinion. Then I was thinking about going shopping.”

Sousuke’s expression was funny, causing Rin to raise a brow in confusion. When since did he ever make such faces? Maybe much more had changed than Rin had realized. Perhaps it had been foolish to think that so much would stay the same between them even now.

Rin mentally scoffed. Of course it couldn’t. Back then Rin had only a silly, fleeting crush. Here and now, it might have blown up in his face. He might actually be in love with Sousuke. Everything had changed.

Sousuke fixed him with a critical look.

“I know you, Rin. You probably have enough clothes to make Gou seem frugal. What do you need more clothes for?” Sousuke teased.

Rin’s knee dug into the meat of Sousuke’s thigh, laughing when he watched him wince and glare down at him. He rubbed at it as if it actually hurt, pouting. Rin tugged at the same blue shirt Sousuke had probably recycle from yesterday.

“You can’t even talk, Sousuke. You probably own three shirts and one pair of jeans. What is this old man look you have going? We’re 22!” Rin said.

Sousuke waved him off; “We can’t all be GQ models. Let us commoners rewear our meager clothes in peace.”

“Che! When I’m done with you, you’ll be the best looking grumpy giant at your university,” Rin said.

“I hope you plan on shelling out for these clothes, Rin. I don’t get my paycheck until Friday.”

“I also know how cheap you are! It’s time to spend a little for once. Or does all your money go into trying to feed that endless gut of yours?”

“I’d rather be butt naked than miss a meal,” Sousuke said. “What’s a pair of jeans for 2000 plus yen when I can get a whole meal instead.”

“Throw down, then. I win and you actually invest in some current century clothes. You win and you just have to watch me pick what I want,” Rin said.

“None of those options are the least bit appealing,” Sousuke grumbled, readying his fist anyway.

Rin held his up with fierce grin. They pulled back, yelling “Jan! Ken! Pon!” and startling some people on the sidewalk. Rin threw scissors and Sousuke threw paper. Rin snipped into the junction between his thumb and index finger, triumphant as Sousuke glowered at him.

“Looks like I win,” He said.

Sousuke muttered something about getting sun light in his eyes or the fact that Rin probably sent him telepathic brainwaves to mess him up. Rin rolled his eyes. Dramatic, big baby. Sousuke flicked his ear, turning towards the other end of the street. Rin shook his head, pulling him the other way. Rin elbowed him in the side, drawing him along by his bicep as they headed to the row of clothing shops Rin had mentally noted on his jog today. A mannequin in the window had made Rin think of Sousuke.

“I can’t believe you survived all this time without me,” Rin muttered. “I’m going to have to enlighten you.”

“Yeah, how did I?” Sousuke murmured. Rin almost didn’t catch it. He figured it was best to pretend that he hadn’t heard him say it, dragging Sousuke along even faster now.

-

“Who are you even texting?” Rin said, trying to lean over Sousuke’s arm to see.

Sousuke turned the phone to the side and pushed Rin back by his forehead with his index finger. Rin pouted, chomping down on his food as Sousuke sent off one last message and then pocketed his phone.

“Is it a significant other?” Rin said, bouncing his eyebrows. His stomach rolled, despite this.

“Absolutely not,” Sousuke said. “Do you remember Kisumi? I forgot to reply to him earlier so now he’s hounding me. He’s in Tokyo, too. We’re going to the same university.”

“Kisumi _Shigino_?” Rin repeated. “From Sano? Oh wow, I haven’t seen him in forever. Last I heard from Makoto he had a little brother. Cute kid, too.”

“Makoto? You mean Tachibana from Iwatobi?” Sousuke asked. He gobbled down a piece of pork, ignoring Rin’s disgusted look.

“Yeah, the same one. He and Haru are studying in Tokyo, you know. Different universities, though,” Rin said. He sent Sousuke a prideful look. “He’s training for the Olympics, too. But it doesn’t make a difference. Neither of you can even hope to smoke me in the water.”

“You’d be on the same team, Rin. That defeats the purpose,” Sousuke said, stealing from Rin’s plate. “I imagine you’re hoping to a relay, though. That’s all you’d talk about back then. You’d make a good team.”

Rin didn’t miss how Sousuke had excluded himself from their talks about swimming. His throat tightened as he forced down the urge to ask. Maybe Sousuke had hit his own wall? Maybe he was hoping to build back up his times in the new semester so he’d have something to boast about too? Rin refocused his thoughts.

“Yeah. In high school, I got to compete with Iwatobi actually,” Rin said.

“I thought you swam for Samezuka?”

“Ah, well. There was an…issue. I subbed in for Iwatobi. Got both teams disqualified. But it was _amazing_, Sou. I wouldn’t have given up that feeling for anything. It was everything I wanted.”

Sousuke nodded. “Good. There’s no point in having regrets. You swam with everything you had with people who did the same. That’s all that matters.”

Rin nudged him with his knee under the table, braving the topic further. “So, I guess that means you still don’t want to swim relay with me, huh?”

Sousuke made that funny expression again. He ruffled Rin’s hair roughly, messing it up until strands were poking everywhere. Rin gave an indignant “Oi!”

“Naw. Relays aren’t my thing, remember? I want to responsible for myself. You and I do best when we’re in different lanes. We’re…rivals, right?”

Rin nudged him again, almost leaning on his arm as he invaded Sousuke’s space. He looked at him intently, catching Sousuke’s side look as he regarded Rin.

“We’re more than that. We’re friends. I want to experience that moment with you. Different lanes or the same, I want you and I to share that sight. Not just in swimming, you know,” Rin said.

Sousuke sighed, resting a big hand on Rin’s head. He stroked Rin’s hair once before pulling away and facing his food as he spoke.

“That’s exactly what you would say,” Sousuke mumbled. “Well, all right. Show me a sight I haven’t seen before. I want to know.”

He held up his fist, and Rin nearly spilled his food in excitement. They bumped fists and Rin slumped back against the booth’s wall, grinning brightly.

-

Sousuke had Wednesday off to Rin’s delight. But to his annoyance (and maybe surprise) Sousuke was texting. Every time Rin had his back turned, a little bit of his attention straying from Sousuke, he was texting. Sousuke didn’t even like making phone calls.

“How’s Kisumi doing?” Rin said, almost biting his tongue at how jealous he seemed to sound.

“Ah, he’s fine. He’s got a date tonight and he wants an opinion on what to wear. I have no idea about any of this stuff, I always tell him. But he can be insufferable,” Sousuke said, huffing but not unaffectionately.

Rin peeked over at the phone, scrolling through the pictures Kisumi had sent Sousuke, considering each. He took the phone and fired off that the vest and button up with the rolled up sleeves were probably best bet if he was looking to charm whoever. Rin saw when Kisumi’s reply came.

_Kisumi: <<**Thanks! Good luck to you too Souuuusuke ;)** >>_

“What’s that about?” Rin asked.

Souske hurriedly locked his phone off with a exasperated sigh and slid it into his pocket. Rin narrowed his eyes at him, trying to stick his hand into Sousuke’s pocket for the phone. Rin already had a few god ideas what Sousuke’s password might be (if he even put one on his phone). Sousuke side-stepped, barely fending off Rin’s hands.

“It’s nothing. Kisumi’s just being Kisumi,” Sousuke said.

Rin wasn’t appeased, latching himself onto Sousuke’s back as they stumbled around Sousuke’s flat. Sousuke grunted, shifting Rin around until he was mostly leaning to his left and swatting at his grabby hands with his right. Turning a little too quickly, he was able to dislodge Rin who could only pout at him.

“When since did you ever need luck, huh, Sousuke?” Rin teased. “Hard work trumps everything right?”

Sousuke tucked a strand of Rin’s hair behind his ear, then roughly grabbed his earlobe and pulled. Rin yelped, clawing at Sousuke’s arm as Sousuke collapsed against him, pinning him against the side of the couch. He had bulked up so much during the years Rin’s head still swam with the realization. Sousuke gathered him up against him, trapping Rin’s arms between their chests and simply just let his body weight keep Rin pinned to the couch.

“You big bear, what the hell!” Rin cried “I can’t even breathe!”

“If you can yell, you can breathe,” Sousuke said, laughing.

Rin opened his mouth, making to bite Sousuke before his friend was forcefully tucking his head against his chest. Rin wailed and they came crashing over the arm of the couch, falling into a painful heap. Rin whacked at Sousuke’s body until he finally rolled away, both of them lying haphazardly across the couch. Rin kicked Sousuke in the side, glowering when it barely made Sousuke flinch. Damn bulky brat.

“You’re too big,” Rin grumbled. “One day you’re going to roll over and crush whoever is sleeping next to you.”

Sousuke grinned slyly, nudging Rin with his foot. “That’s never been a problem all the time I’ve been here.”

“Shut up!” Rin said, indignant.

Sousuke shrugged, then. “I’m only joking. Aside from Kisumi, you’re the only one who I’ve had here. I don’t usually go to other people’s places. Just Kisumi sometimes.”

“You guys stayed close, huh?” Rin said.

“Yeah. He’s a good friend. He annoys me sometimes, but he’s dependable. We should all get together before the semester starts. He’s working, too, but his hours are crazy. He’s dying to see you again,” Sousuke said, smiling.

Rin nodded, “I’m dying to see him, too.”

Sousuke stretched, rotating his right arm a bit as he stood up. He held out a hand for Rin to take. Rin let himself be pulled to his feet without a second thought.

“What do you feel like eating tonight?” Sousuke said.

“Anything you want to give me, so long as you’re cooking,” Rin said. “If this keeps up, I might want you to cook for me forever.”

Sousuke looked a bit embarrassed, but laughed lightly. “I wouldn’t mind, I suppose.”

-

One week later as he was sitting in his apartment, still full of boxes, and eating left-over takeout did Rin realize something. Rin had messed up. Here it was right in his face. He had foregone actually unpacking his stuff in exchange for being distracted by one person. He had meticulously cleaned his partially furnished apartment as if expecting someone. He couldn’t go a day without wanting him around, wanting to know more. He wanted his attention and his snark, his terrible sense of direction, and his obvious losing at rock-paper-scissors. He wanted what made Sousuke’s face darken, and wanted to be what made Sousuke’s heart lift, a weight off his shoulders, whatever they may be.

Staring into the styrofoam container of left-overs, Rin came to his conclusion mid-chew.

He was in love with Sousuke Yamazaki.

-

It had become habit now to wait outside for Sousuke after his shift. He wouldn’t get this chance much, probably, come next week. So Rin was all for it, now. He leaned back against the Coffee House having already checked his watch. Just a few more minutes and Sousuke would be pushing through the doors.

Rin sighed, readjusting his beanie. His stomach was churning with the weight of his feelings. He had held out pretty good the last few days, but the longer this went on, the more Rin wanted nothing more than the blurt out his feelings. He was sure they were better than that, that even if Sousuke rejected him, they’d go on. He squeezed his eyes shut. There was no way what they had was one-sided.

“Rin, have you been waiting long?” Sousuke said, too close to his ear.

Rin jumped, whirling on him with a weak glare. Sousuke blinked before laughing. He waited a minute longer until Rin got the idea and they took the path to the park.

“Way to scare the heck out of a guy,” Rin grumbled. “But, no, I didn’t wait long. How was work?”

“Same as yesterday. Only one guy gave me trouble, but that’s because he was annoyingly fussy. I think,” Sousuke said. “Are we still meeting up with Kisumi, Tachibana, and Nanase tomorrow?”

Rin nodded, “Yeah, its been decided. Haru’s being a big baby but Makoto will get through to him. He can’t float around in his bath tub all day every day.”

Sousuke laughed, “I see. I look forward to it, then. But, uh, does Nanase know Kisumi is going?”

Rin smiled devilishly. “Maybe, maybe not. Doesn’t matter. He’s going to sit down and eat and enjoy a wonderful evening with his friends.”

Sousuke shook his head, just calling Rin terrible as they continued to walk. Rin bit his lip. He had known there was some animosity between Haru and Sousuke, but Sousuke acted rather neutral about him. He only hoped that the time in between had melted what had caused the friction before.

“I’m glad you wanted to go,” Rin admitted. “The last thing I’d want is for any trouble. I wanted a day with all my friends. It’d do no good if we all swam together and there was trouble, right?”

“….Right,” Sousuke murmured.

When Rin tried to pry more out of him, continue the conversation, he was met with quiet. Sousuke didn’t reply, nor did he look at Rin. Rin chewed on his lip, reaching out to hold Sousuke’s forearm. Sousuke looked at him, teal eyes a little dark but burning.

“Sou?”

“Yeah, Rin?”

Rin smiled weakly, “You’re free for the day, right? Wanna see my flat? I just realized I never invited you over. We can watch a movie on my laptop.”

Sousuke nodded, smiling back a bit, too. He seemed a bit hesitant, though, but he didn’t try to separate from Rin. Rin wanted to lean in more but held himself back. He waited, wanting to hear Sousuke physically say it.

“Yeah. I’d love to,” Sousuke finally said.

Rin let his arm go. The tiny bit of space they walked to Rin’s apartment with left Rin longing. Sousuke was almost too careful in keep their hands from brushing. Rin tried not to sigh.

-

“Here it is, home sweet home!” Rin said. “I’ve still got a bit of unpacking to do.”

Sousuke looked up from where he was removing his shoes at the door. The living room was pretty immaculate for someone who had just moved in. There were some boxes to the side, but mostly the apartment was clean. There wasn’t anything on the wall just yet, minus a calendar and a clock. Rin had always been a neat child anyway. Sousuke snickered under his breath.

“How long did it take you to do all of this?” Sousuke said, sitting on the arm of the couch. He crossed his arms.

“The better part of yesterday. The furniture is secondhand. A friend of my mom’s donated it,” Rin said. “I haven’t really used the kitchen much, since you’ve been cooking for me all week.”

He shot Sousuke a triumphant grin, to which his friend only rolled his eyes. He spied the water bottle and snacks, and what looked like Sousuke’s containers drying next to the sink from the kitchen doorway.

“So then your kitchen is probably empty, huh?” Sousuke joked. “Not that you can cook anyway. You could burn water.”

“That was a long time ago! I can definitely cook now! It definitely has food, too,” Rin said, indignant. “Maybe not enough to satisfy your bottomless pit, but there’s food in there.”

Rin scratched the back of his head as he added, “I haven’t actually unpacked kitchen utensils completely, though. I was going to get to it later today.”

“You’ve been here nearly two weeks and still no progress? Some athlete you are,” Soususke teased

He shook his head with a laugh. He patted Rin on his shoulder. Rin colored and kneed him. He had gotten along fine, actually. He was rarely eating takeout since he was over at Sousuke’s most times anyway, who was always adamant about Rin’s diet from the beginning. Rin hadn’t found it necessary to cook if Sousuke was supplying him with enough to eat and take home now. He’d really been spoiled these past two weeks. Sousuke pointed to the boxes with a teasing grin.

“Well, how about I reward you for all that hard work? I’ll cook us up some lunch. Which box has the frying pan and such?”

“That one,” Rin said, pointing to the left box. “Knives, forks, chopsticks, spoons, bowls. Everything should be in there.”

“I’m on it, then,” Sousuke said, stretching.

He bent down, rifling through the box’s content. He picked out the frying pan and the bowls, inspecting them before placing them back. If Rin didn’t know better, he’d think Sousuke was judging him on his appliances. Sousuke hadn’t said a word about swimming or the upcoming Olympics at all on their way to Rin’s apartment. Even when Rin dropped a few things about how he’d been doing on the swimming front, all Sousuke had done was nod and make a little encouraging comment here and there. Rin could only bite the inside of his cheek.

But, more importantly, Sousuke looked way too good in his jeans. Rin’s eyes roved over the curve of his back, and down along his legs. He eyed his way back up, watching the stretch and pull of Sousuke’s shirt along his back. Rin’s mouth was dry.

Sousuke hooked his hands under the bottom of the box, kneeling as he did so. Just as he was going to raise back up, he gave out a pained whine, instantly dropping the box. Sousuke knelt back down, hand massaging into his right shoulder. Rin’s eyes bugged and he quickly rushed to Sousuke’s side. His hands hovered over his shoulder, staring at Sousuke’s pained, scrunched eyes.

“Sousuke?” Rin whispered. “What happened?”

Sousuke groaned, gritting his teeth. Rin waited a few more minutes, not touching him as Sousuke breathed through his pain. With one final big sigh, Sousuke cracked open his eyes and regarded Rin. His second sigh sounded defeated.

“Well, I guess I can’t hide it anymore,” Sousuke said, solemnly. “My shoulder’s messed up. I haven’t swam in a good couple years.”

Rin fell back on his behind, staring wildly at Sousuke. There was no way. Not Sousuke. Not determined, theory-freak, driven Sousuke. Rin looked down at his shoulder.

“When did it happen?” Rin whispered.

“Second year of high school,” Sousuke said simply.

He sat back, too, facing Rin. He kept his legs bent. No part of him was touching Rin despite how close they were sitting. Rin wanted nothing more than to drag him close, but he held out. Sousuke smiled a little bitterly, sadly.

“I over trained, Rin. I messed up. We stopped talking and I thought, there’s only one place I know Rin will be: The World Stage.,” Sousuke said. “I messed up.”

“Why didn’t you come home?! I’m sure Gou told you I was back,” Rin said, voice watery. He didn’t want to cry.

“I couldn’t face you. I didn’t want to disappoint you,” Sousuke said simply. “I wasn’t doing too good.”

“Neither was I!” Rin cried. “I hit a wall, and it was so bad, Sousuke. I nearly gave up on swimming.”

Rin sniffled, rising up on his knees. Sousuke uncurled from himself just a little bit. Rin leaned forward.

“But you didn’t,” He said, smiling kindly. “I know, Gou told me. But Nanase – Iwatobi, they saved you right? I couldn’t give you that. I would have made things worse. I would have ruined things with your friends back then.”

“What do you mean?” Rin said. He was inching towards Sousuke now.

“I was always jealous of Nanase, Rin. I admired his swimming a lot, but I was always jealous. I would have grated on things. But it’s fine now. We’ve both grown up a lot, huh?” Sousuke said, chuckling.

Rin crept between Sousuke’s legs. He grabbed the front of his shirt tightly, almost about to shake him. Sousuke only looked at him calmly, as if waiting and ready to accept anything that Rin would dish out, as he always had. His tears dotted the front of Sousuke’s shirt. Sousuke’s thumbs came up and wiped at the corners of his eyes. Rin exhaled sharply.

“I never wanted to lose track of you, you know. That’s one of the reason I’m here. I wanted to see you again. I wanted to reconnect. I didn’t – If I had just – Sousuke, _why_,” Rin said, voice breaking. “What do we do now?”

Sousuke cupped the back of Rin’s head, tilting it so Rin could look him in the eye. Rin’s eyes overflowed with tears, dotting the collar of Sousuke’s shirt. Sousuke pulled him forward so their forehead were pressing against each other. He twirled one of Rin’s fringes between his fingers.

“Exactly what you wanted to do, Rin,” Sousuke said, laughing. “You found me, we’re reconnecting. Now we just move forward.”

Rin hiccuped, rubbing at his eyes. He pounded a fist to Sousuke’s chest weakly. Sousuke pressed a kiss to the inside of Rin’s wrist. His smile was gentle.

“But your dream, Sousuke,” Rin said, words broken up by his hiccups.

“That’s the fun thing about dreams, Rin. There’s always room for new ones. Let’s find it together,” Sousuke said.

Rin didn’t bother holding back then, cupping Sousuke’s cheeks and pecking him over and over again on his mouth. Sousuke smiled each time their lips connected, almost chasing after Rin whenever he pulled away. Each kiss after lasted longer and longer, until Rin was nipping at Sousuke’s upper lip, and Sousuke was trying to keep him firmly against him. Rin laughed around a fresh batch of tears. He wiped at his eyes and grinned at Sousuke, hands resting on his biceps. Sousuke looked contently back at him, droopy eyes lidded. Rin glanced at the box and back at Sousuke, grinning mischievously.

“But first, you’re still cooking right?” Rin teased.

Sousuke only laughed, agreeing that he would. Rin pecked him on the nose. They’d go slow, they’d figure things out. That was perfect in Rin’s book for now.

-

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> https://shyfoxes.tumblr.com/post/139068432733/sourin-week-day-7-aiko-desho-coffee-shop


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